Questions about raising mantid eggs?

[Arruby]

Okay, so.. my brothers bred a TON of Chinese mantids and now they're not really paying attention to them anymore, so the care has been left to me.

They laid their egg sacs (or whatever they're called) a few weeks ago. I keep them in a seperate container (a friend told me that their mothers would eat them).

There are five egg sacs. How should I care for them? At the moment I have them hanging upside-down in a large container. A sixth is attached to the rim of a second container, so we haven't moved it. Is it safe for it to be in the same container as its mother?

And until recently I never really moisturized them.. are they dead then? There was a bit of water at the bottom of the old container, and I made sure to spray the new one a bit as soon as I moved them, but I'm not so sure.

Advice would be great. ^.^

 

[lunarstorm]

Peter, the founder of this message board, has a great thread summarizing your question. Click on that link for a great place to start.

I've read that Chinese oothecas (aka egg sacs or "ooths") can be refrigerated and saved until spring if you'd like. There are numerous advantages to waiting, including if the care of many nymphs is overwhelming, you can always release them.

 

[hibiscusmile]

If they have been warm for a few weeks, it is best to just hatch them and sell them. Never to late to mist the ooths, do it daily now for about a week, don't drown them though.

 

[Arruby]

...I must've missed the thread. D: Sorry.

Hm.. I think I'm just going to let them hatch naturally, not freeze them. |D My mom would be upset if I put bug eggs in the freezer. Very upset.

Um.. how would I sell them? x-x Is there a website I use, or..?

Thank you for the advice! ^.^ So they're not dead because of that then? Thank goodness...

 

[ShieldMantid1997]

use this website! Use the for sale or wanted, but make sure to read the rules.

 

[hibiscusmile]

yes, little chinese are a favorite!

 

[GreenOasis]

I put my Chinese ooths in the veggie drawer (in a labeled baggie) of my fridge for a couple of months, and then hatch them out. Not sure if you can FREEZE them. ?

In all honesty, I seriously doubt the mother would eat the babies, as they are just too tiny for her to bother (unless she is being starved, which I doubt is the case here. ) BUT...you don't want the ooth to hatch with her because it will be a nightmare trying to herd them all into separate cups!

If you want to sell them (you can even sell the ooths!), simply go to the classified page on this site and "Create Thread". Chinese are a popular species!

 

[Arruby]

I talked about it with my mom, and I'll be allowed to sell them.

.

What kind of containers should I use? Plastic, or..? From what I read there seemed to be a ton of eggs in each ooth. Seems like a lot of sorting to do.

Thanks so much for all the advice! ^.^ I can't wait until they hatch!