Questions about feeding

[Anasule]

Hi,

I recently acquired seven baby mantises there’s been a few casualty’s already in order:

One was eaten by a cricket less than half of his size.

One had ruptured/popped in transit and died shortly after delivery

One was just dead on the bottom of the tub two days after I purchased them

So remaining I have:

2 x Orchid Mantis (1cm long)

1 x Spiky Flower Mantis (1cm long)

1 x Unidentified Brown Mantis (2cm long)

So now I have purchased some pre made fruit flies I have a pot that has what looks like mash potatoes with some curled wood shavings on the top and loads of casters (maggots that have gone hard) a few hatched today about four of them and I’m wondering how do you get the flies from this pot into the pots with the mantis in?

So far the only idea I have is making a hole in the mantis tubs and a hole in the fly tub and linking them with a straw and some black electrical tape and hoping the flies propagate from tub to tub.

The mantis are only small so I purchased some of the long rectangle pots they keep grasshoppers in at the reptile shop put some wet tissue on one side of the put as seen on pictures here and some plant life and they seem happy enough in there ill try and get some pictures later.

Any suggestions for a better tub would be welcome.

Anasule

 

[LauraMG]

The way I do it is just the way you'd think. Pop the tops on both the fruit flies and the mantid enclosures and start tapping the cup until the amount you want fall out. It's not the easiest thing with hydei flies because they tend to cling more than the melanogastor do, in my experience. Just make sure you don't start dumping the medium (mashed potato looking stuff) into the enclosures and you should be ok! I hope this helps! Maybe someone else has a better method that will help us both!

 

[Anasule]

If i start tapping the flies out they will all just fly off then the girlfriend will kill me with a stick ...

 

[Rick]

I grow fruit flies in the 32 oz insect cups. The cups have a small hole in the side that is plugged with a foam plug. To remove them I simply take a fruit fly vial and insert a funnel into it standing upright. I remove the plug from the big fruit fly container and tap out the flies into the funnel. Then I replug the ff's and remove the funnel from the small container and plug it with a foam plug. THen I can use my funnel to insert into the holes in the side of the mantis cups to pour flies in from the vial. It is all very simple and quick.

 

[Anasule]

Any chance you could photo this?

Anasule

 

[lancaster1313]

I do a similar thing to Ricks method but without the funnel. I cut a hole in the side of the ff container that is just big enough to pop in a specimen vial that came with a microscope set. The same size hole is made into the mantis container. I just pop the vial into the ff container, tap some ffs into the vial, then remove the vial and put it in the mantis container, then tap them in. I wrapped the vial near the opening with a rubber band so it forms a seal between the containers. Any small vial would work with this method. Just don't forget to quickly plug the container's holes when the vial is removed. I also bring the containers outside when transferring the flies beetween containers. Ffs can be quick and sneaky. Sorry I have no photos.

 

[LauraMG]

Uh oh, I have flightless fruit fly cultures! Sorry, I assumed you did too! Strike my suggestion and go with other people's! :lol:

 

[Colorcham427]

The way I do is exactly as stated:

Get flightless or wingless fruit fly cultures!!! For one thing.

Tap the fruit fly cup downward towards the lid, and quickly open the lid and smack em all in a separate empty 32 ounce deli cup.

Now you have a cup filled with flies!

Then open your baby mantids cup, net etc. and knock in however many you want.

This is the easiest way. Didn't have time to read this thread thoroughly, but if you have fruit flies that fly, that just sucks! Get some wingless/flightless.

 

[Anasule]

Yes i have the kind that fly

Im looking for a good supplier for wingless ones as it seems mantis don’t eat the wings anyway.

Has anyone ever tried feeding baby maggots to a mantis I put some fruit fly casters in the mantis tubs so they would hatch in there (less mess and no transferee problems) and i got one little white maggot in there by mistake my orchid mantis curiously followed it round the tub and finally decided to munch it down.

So now I’m thinking what about regular maggots as I’m just down the road from a fishing shop?

How much do i have to vary the food?

Does anyone here sell the food?

 

[hibiscusmile]

You are funny, she will hit u with a stick:lol: ... u just have to learn to run with your head down .

I like your straw idea, won't hurt to try it, and they will eat the maggots if they can see them, very smart of you. I would think by this morning you would have a lot more fruit flies hatching too.

 

[LauraMG]

Does anyone here sell the food?

The lovely lady with the post right above mine does! http://www.mantisplace.com She sells all kinds of feeders including FLIGHTLESS fruit flies, houseflies (which orchids love), blue bottle flies, etc. There are people in here that sell feeder roaches if you want to colonize those. You can check out the classifieds.

Honestly, on the maggot part of what you said, there are easier feeders that don't require such stinky environments! :lol:

 

[Anasule]

Thats USA though bit far to ship a maggot lol

 

[LauraMG]

Thats USA though bit far to ship a maggot lol

I didn't know you weren't in the US. Hmmmm....well I know there are a few people on here that are in Europe. Check the breeder section and the classified section and see if maybe you can find someone in your area!

 

[sjb123]

i just use a pooter i made - get a container put modelling clay/plasticine on top and stick 2 straws in 1 of the straws should have netting on the end that is in the container. to put it simply click here lol