orchid infection problems :(

[agent A]

lost 2 of my L2s to this

it starts with the end of the abdomen stiffening and pointing downward and motor control is lost

the infected nymph can't climb

why do the legs move upward like this?

this is typically the scene after a few more hours, the thing dies overnight and the next day is a deep black

anyone else see this? any way to prevent it??

 

[Mime454]

That's horrible! What are you feeding them? What temp?

 

[agent A]

houseflies and 70 degrees daily misting

 

[Ranitomeya]

I keep mine from staying on wet surfaces and they seem to be thriving. Mine have started to molt to the fourth instar this week.

They're each within their own individual deli cups with paper towels hotglued to the lid as a molting surface. There's a piece of paper towel at the bottom that I change of frequently. The deli cup themselves have a great number of holes poked into them for ventilation, and I keep my orchid mantids humid by keeping all the deli container inside a larger container that has moist peat lining the bottom. A heating mat underneath warms the peat substrate which both heats up the interior and adds moisture to the air. When I give the mantids water to drink, I usually take them out and spray them on my finger or wet the paper towel on the lid of their containers lightly until they've had their fill, and then I usually dry off the lid so that the interior of their containers never have a wet surface unless the mantids look like they're going to molt. They don't appear to be dehydrating very quickly with my method, and they tend to accept the water I give them once every two or three days.

You should try keeping them off wet surfaces, as liquid water in an enclosed space with a mantis and food items giving off wastes makes for a very good place for mold and bacteria to grow. When the mantis eventually wants to take a drink, there's a good chance it might drink the contaminated water and get an infection, not to mention that being in contact with it can just as easily infect it in other ways.

 

[agent A]

I keep mine from staying on wet surfaces and they seem to be thriving. Mine have started to molt to the fourth instar this week.

They're each within their own individual deli cups with paper towels hotglued to the lid as a molting surface. There's a piece of paper towel at the bottom that I change of frequently. The deli cup themselves have a great number of holes poked into them for ventilation, and I keep my orchid mantids humid by keeping all the deli container inside a larger container that has moist peat lining the bottom. A heating mat underneath warms the peat substrate which both heats up the interior and adds moisture to the air. When I give the mantids water to drink, I usually take them out and spray them on my finger or wet the paper towel on the lid of their containers lightly until they've had their fill, and then I usually dry off the lid so that the interior of their containers never have a wet surface unless the mantids look like they're going to molt. They don't appear to be dehydrating very quickly with my method, and they tend to accept the water I give them once every two or three days.

You should try keeping them off wet surfaces, as liquid water in an enclosed space with a mantis and food items giving off wastes makes for a very good place for mold and bacteria to grow. When the mantis eventually wants to take a drink, there's a good chance it might drink the contaminated water and get an infection, not to mention that being in contact with it can just as easily infect it in other ways.

u have a good point even though i've only had them for 6 days

but i will take your advice especially since when i add hf pupae they leave brown specks on the paper towel

 

[Ranitomeya]

Paper towel is excellent camouflage for fungus. By the time you notice the fungus, it's usually already spored and possibly infected your mantis.

The fungus starts as transparent or whitish threads that spread from any source of useable organic material--like waste and leftovers, and can easily be mistaken for the fibers of paper towel.

Keeping the paper towel dry can delay the growth of potentially pathogenic fungii, but you should keep an eye on containers with paper towels and remove and replace them as they get soiled.

 

[Rick]

70 seems pretty low for that species. That being said, issues like this are fairly common with them. I lost more than a few to that black "fungus". Not saying your issue is the same thing.