Orchid Mantid Vomiting

antjoss · Jan 23, 2005

Hi all,

A while ago I lost a male orchid mantid nymph when he started exuding a browny liquid from his mouth parts and died soon after. Well one of my adult females is know doing the same thing, only in much larger quantities, it also smells very sickly sweet. Has anybody experienced this before, what is it, and is it always fatal to the mantid?

Thanks

Wayne J

Jesse · Jan 23, 2005

I have had it happen to a fair share of mantids, but mostly L1-L2 nymphs of several species. I have had it happen to 1 adult female S. centralis. Bad news, they eventually starved, because they are vomiting up partially digested food. I'm not sure what causes the chronic vomiting, but it has always been fatal in the cases I've had.

Joe · Jan 23, 2005

I've had this happen to my male dead leaf mantis last week but it only did it for one day, i sprayed it and i think that was what stopped it from doing that. I think they vomit because the food your giving them is dying or sick, as i accidentaly fed the my male that and the next day it vomited.

Joe

KennethJ78 · Jan 24, 2005

I've had 2 Sphodromantis lineola subadult males doing the same thing. Some people said it was due to the food I was giving them: Shelfordella tartara ( "Red Runners" some kind of roach ). Actually.. the roaches weren't the problem; it was because of what I was feeding the roaches.

Thinking they would need a lot of moisture I fed the roaches all kinds of fruits and vegetables.... result -> They started dying. They developed some kind of fungal infection in their stomachs. ( It occurred to me that the mantids would only eat the head and legs of the roaches, throwing the abdomens away.... )

Possibly this fungal infection in the roaches' stomach is the cause for the Mantis to feel sick and vomit partially digested food.

My solution : decrease the humidity level immediately ( allthough you have to watch out with that if you have species that depend on high humidity levels.... ) and stop feeding roaches / crickets / whatever moist food like fruit and vegetables.

I'm now keeping my roaches under much dryer ( did I spell that right ? ) conditions and there hasn't been a single roach death yet. Feeding them with only dogfood ( no meat from a can, but the dry biscuit like food ) turned out to work for me.

My mantids stopped vomiting and have gotten more active ever since.

I'm sorry for possible mis-spelled words and all. I'm from the Netherlands, Europe... English isn't the language we speak here, but I do my best.

Greets, Kenneth

Rick · Mar 18, 2005

I just had a mantid throw up. None of the others are doing it so I am not sure what the problem is. I am just going to not feed him for about four days and see what happens. He is nice and plump so he isn't going to starve. Only seen him do it once so far.