Recent Pics-First Ooth Religiosa

mantisboy · Sep 17, 2010

Here is a pic I was going to send Seattle79, prior to shipping my male religiosa "Spock" on the morning of 9-15-2010. Everything seemed normal as Spock was eating his standard Hopper.

spockamb4deathbreakfast by 67camaro rs ss, on Flickr

This pic was taken a mere 12 hours later as I watched Spock step off his hanging bar shaky and weak. After a quick misting I dabbed a Q-tip which he gave the death clutch and drank from for about 5 minutes. He seemed like he was getting a little better, then it all went down hill from there right into the freezer.

TryingtosaveSpock by 67camaro rs ss, on Flickr

This is a pic of my boyz taken just a few days ago. I heavily mist the leaves of the plant and let the males all drink and fly around for an hour or so in the mornings. I've never had an issue with them attacking each other or even giving a threat pose.

Partyof5 by 67camaro rs ss, on Flickr

Pic of my big girl Goliath after laying her Ooth which took 2 hours, talk about an instant diet. Extremely weak I figured she was very dehydrated after laying her Ooth. She cleared 1/2 a leaf of water droplets twice an perked right back up again. I was surprised that didn't care at all about her Ooth.

Hydratingafterlayingooth by 67camaro rs ss, on Flickr

A pic of one my males having a drink.

<a href="

title="Having a drink by 67camaro rs ss, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4105/4997928910_ac086106b5.jpg" width="500" height="375" alt="Having a drink" /></a>

Goliath's first Ooth....and mine too!

FirstOothGoliath by 67camaro rs ss, on Flickr

Jesskb · Sep 17, 2010

Congrats! Nice pics! Will you be hatching it out or putting it outside?

hibiscusmile · Sep 17, 2010

You did good! oh, so did she!

mantisboy · Sep 17, 2010

hibiscusmile said:
You did good! oh, so did she!

Thanks folks, it has been a real kick! I think I will wait till spring, just haven't made up my mind weather to refrigerate the Ooth or leave it outside. Our weather has been highly unstable this summer, I would hate to have the strange weather trigger a hatch in November.

Is there any special tricks to refriderating them so they keep well, spring around here could come as late as May 1st?

Still waiting on my smaller female "Latifah" to lay her first Ooth, should be in the next couple of days. She did lay a little Ooth or some white foamy thing about the size of a salmon eggs that hardened and shrunk to the size of sesame seed and stuck to her wing tip for a couple of days.

Latifah and I got into it last night and what was a normal discussion ended in a rather heated argument. I simply mentioned that it would be nice if she would just lay her Ooth since her and Goliath were mated at the same time and Goliath had laid hers. Classic...she gives me a threat pose and goes on and on, "You're not a female mantid! You're not the one carrying an Ooth! Do you know what it is like to hang upside down lugging 300 eggs inside of you? You think just because you mist me, clean my housing, feed me, and breed me that I now owe you something? Did you ever once stop and think about what I'm going through?" :angry:

I tried to explain to her that I was just mentioning a fact, that was all. Just like a typical female mantid she turned her back to me and started walking up her stick. I told her, "Yeah, that's right just turn your back to me and pretend I'm not even here, I guess this conversation is over". "What are you? Hey, don't you..don't do it....you are so predictable. That's right! Go ahead..go upside down, and just ignore me."

At which point she raised her left coxae, extended it up in the air at me, then went into the praying position and gave me the statue treatment. Needless to say I was pretty ticked-off and I told her, "Maybe I should just put you into the freezer!" :angry:

Actually I don't want you guys to think I'm crazy, I didn't really threaten her with the freezer...but I was thinking it. :blink: .......