Questions about newborn mantids

[uralowl]

A friend of mine recently had one of his Indian Flower mantids mature into an adult male. I've got an adult female of the same species and my friend has agreed to sell me his male sometime tomorrow.

I'm hoping to try and breed the mantids, of course. My female has already laid 2 unfertile ooths since she became an adult, but I hope she may still be able to lay at least one more ooth that will be fertile after she's been mated.

Getting to the point, I was wondering what to do if I do get a fertile ooth and it hatches? I know when the eggs hatch, the baby mantids usually turn on and eat each other until they're bigger. I guess that's pretty much inevitable that a few mantids will be eaten, but I was wondering if it would be possible to try and separate most of the baby mantids soon after they hatch? Or should I wait until they're older?

Although I know that cannibalism will still be possible, if I gave the mantids a big enough enclosure with plenty of fruit flies, would they be less likely to snack on each other?

Sorry for all the questions, I've never bred mantids before so this is new territory for me.

Edit: Sorry, another question - How long does mating usually take? I heard it can takes hours and I plan to try and get the pair to mate outside their enclosures while I feed the female a cricket. I can't watch them for hours to make sure the male doesn't fly away to God knows where, lol.

 

[hibiscusmile]

all good ? s . should mate right away, she will eat him if she gets a chance, seperate the babies after 2 or 3rd instar, they are good till them, teens are bad, u get the point! Make sure when u get the male they are same species, they all look pretty much alike, she can lay a dozen eggs in her lifetime, and only needs mated once. good day!

 

[uralowl]

all good ? s . should mate right away, she will eat him if she gets a chance, seperate the babies after 2 or 3rd instar, they are good till them, teens are bad, u get the point! Make sure when u get the male they are same species, they all look pretty much alike, she can lay a dozen eggs in her lifetime, and only needs mated once. good day!

Thanks.

I'll transfer the fertilised ooth to a large deli cup and keep the L1 babies in there until they're bigger. Hopefully not too many will be cannibalised.

 

[hibiscusmile]

u will do good, make sure to mist the ooths 3 or 4 timesa week and babies get water in am and again at bedtime.

 

[Mantiskid]

A friend of mine recently had one of his Indian Flower mantids mature into an adult male. I've got an adult female of the same species and my friend has agreed to sell me his male sometime tomorrow.

I'm hoping to try and breed the mantids, of course. My female has already laid 2 unfertile ooths since she became an adult, but I hope she may still be able to lay at least one more ooth that will be fertile after she's been mated.

Getting to the point, I was wondering what to do if I do get a fertile ooth and it hatches? I know when the eggs hatch, the baby mantids usually turn on and eat each other until they're bigger. I guess that's pretty much inevitable that a few mantids will be eaten, but I was wondering if it would be possible to try and separate most of the baby mantids soon after they hatch? Or should I wait until they're older?

Although I know that cannibalism will still be possible, if I gave the mantids a big enough enclosure with plenty of fruit flies, would they be less likely to snack on each other?

Sorry for all the questions, I've never bred mantids before so this is new territory for me.

Edit: Sorry, another question - How long does mating usually take? I heard it can takes hours and I plan to try and get the pair to mate outside their enclosures while I feed the female a cricket. I can't watch them for hours to make sure the male doesn't fly away to God knows where, lol.

The nymphs of Creobroter are a lot less likely to cannibalize each other than nymphs of other species (like S. carolina OMG), so communal housing nshould be fine until around L5-L6. They do need plenty of space and feeders though.

About the breeding, I wouldn't mate them outdoors. Any thing could happen to them (get eaten by a bird, fly away). I prefer to mate mantids this way:

1) Feed the female as much as she can eat for 3-4 days before the mating attempt (so she will hopefully not cannibalize your male)

2) Place the female in a room on a plant or table, and give her a prey item

3) While she's busy eating, place the male behind her. If he doesn't do anything, gently nudge him to get him moving

4) Once he jumps on her back, leave them for a while

5) An hour or two into mating, try feeding the female

6) It's normal for the male to ride around on the female for a while before or after they mate

7) Once they are done, the male will usually fly away of his own accord

Hope this helps

P.S. Congrats on raising your creo to adulthood. Mine all died @ sub adulthood

 

[Rick]

Unless it is some rare species or a species that hatches few young, I keep them all together until I get a number I can easily manage. Some ooths hatch hundreds of mantids. It is impractical for most people to separate that many nymphs and care for them all. Not saying it can't be done, but it isn't easy. If they have plenty of foliage and food, cannibalism can be reduced.