Questions about care for a Ghost Mantid

[Fuzzypants]

Hello everyone, recently (yesterday) my room mate decided to get me a gift to celebrate spring (yes we are weird like that) and got me a ghost mantid. While it is SUPER cool and I think I've watched the mantid more in the last 24 hours then anything else BUT I need to figure out how to care for him. I'm no expert not even a newbie I'm lower then that. Right now I have "him" in what looks to be like a large deli cup from the olive bar..something like this...

2 sticks that cross each other. I also "installed" a mesh cover so air flow can go in and out. From my readings (aka jam course 101) I've found out...

- "he" needs to be sprayed 3-4 times a week

- eats crickets, small roaches, flys, I assume butterflys and moths when it comes to be that season in new england

- enjoys the company of others but might quickly turn to cannibalism if not enough food is present (I think thats what I read at least lol)

- You can offer "him" a small drop of honey as a treat every now and then

- the mantis is kept in my room where its slightly warmer "his" cup reads 75 degrees and humidity is 60%

- lives a long time...whatever that means

am I missing anything else? I'm aware ghost mantis aren't good "beginner" mantis but I'd rather not see this guy die to my neglect. I'll post pictures later tonight when I get out of class

 

[Opivy]

covered pretty much everything! Might want to keep a sheet of paper towel on the bottom to absorb moisture and help out. I got 5 of these guys and they've been growing well on me =)

 

[PhilinYuma]

Yep, with the addition of the paper towel to hold moisture, you've got it pretty much covered. If you have some soft plastic foam, though, what they put in the cushions that you can use on the bleachers, cut a 1" square plug and cut a hole in the side of a pot (not the one he's sitting in!) a little bit smaller, with a pair of scissors or an Exacto blade and you will have a feeding port for introducing flying critters. And BTW, ghosts are great starter mantids!

Good luck!

 

[hibiscusmile]

Ghost like to have a drink everyday!

 

[Fuzzypants]

thank you for the replies. I read somewhere that ghost aren't good beginners but I'm glad that was wrong lol I was really nervous

so I put the paper towel down on the bottom of the cup

I'm hoping to get some pics later tonight when I get home so you guys can see my mantis I've been feeding him crickets (pinheads) is there something else I can feed him until he gets bigger? i have cockroaches, bean beetles & earthworms. Also in my reptile supplies (i have a frogs) I have a medium lees kritter cage like this...

after looking at the other sections in this forum I've come to the conclusion this is FAR too big for the mantid. Is there any other mantid or walking stick sp. I could put in here or is this cage just way too big. i ask because I'd rather sell it and get money to put towards something else. Of course I could put more ghost mantis in there but I'd rather figure out how to care for them first before I start having multiple species.

sorry for the 20 questions lol I'm just trying to soak up as much information as possible.

 

[Krissim Klaw]

after looking at the other sections in this forum I've come to the conclusion this is FAR too big for the mantid. Is there any other mantid or walking stick sp. I could put in here or is this cage just way too big. i ask because I'd rather sell it and get money to put towards something else. Of course I could put more ghost mantis in there but I'd rather figure out how to care for them first before I start having multiple species.

No such thing as way too big cage in my opinion and I wouldn't personally keep more than one adult mantid in that cage. Only downside to larger cages if you start getting ones that are massive enough and have enough stuff in them that it becomes hard to tell if your mantis is finding the prey items dropped in and eating enough. My personal favorite choice for mantis cages is to go with the fine mesh cages because I find the mantises have an easier time climbing the sides versus the slick plastic or glass of other terrariums. As for feeding nymphs fruit flies are a popular choice since they are cheap, easy to keep and easy to feed.

 

[Fuzzypants]

thank you for the reply krissim

the mantis shed today..scared the jesus out of me I thought he was dead! lol i was so mad

is there anything special I need to do when "hes" done shedding? is "he" fragile like an invert would be once they shed their exo skeleton?

 

[Krissim Klaw]

thank you for the reply krissim

the mantis shed today..scared the jesus out of me I thought he was dead! lol i was so mad

is there anything special I need to do when "hes" done shedding? is "he" fragile like an invert would be once they shed their exo skeleton?

Only thing special I suggest doing is leaving him alone for a good 24 hours. They are delicate and soft especially right after shedding however after the first hour to couple hours their exoskeleton will do most of its hardening. After about 24 hours I usually give them a nice spritz of water since they are generally thirsty after shedding and treat them as I would any other mantis. Sometimes it can take the prey drive/desire to eat longer to kick in than others so if I offer food and they don't show any interest I'll remove it and give them another day or so till trying again.