Shriveled wings?

[H_Ercule_S]

So my mantis just went through the molt that her wings came in on. During the molt I saw her wings were fine, when I came back home from work she had finished molting but her wings were (and 2 days later still are) shriveled. The only change in her behavior is that now she wiggles her body a lot, and I know its because she is trying to 'pump up' her wings like other insects, but its not working for her. Will she be able to molt again? If she can't safely molt anymore can her wings be clipped to allow her to continue molting? Or am I just over reacting to something that happens normally that will fix itself in a couple days?

 

[Domanating]

I assume this is the mantis you're talking about

http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?app=galleryℑ=6250

In that case you can start calling it a "he" now as it is a male Mantis Religiosa.

He will not molt anymore and if his wings didn't extend fully in the first hours after molting, they never will. This is not a life threatening situation at all and your mantis will not suffer from it.

You can actually call it a blessing because males really like to fly and letting one out of the enclosure is really risky. Now you won't have the risk of him escaping that easily.

In the wild however, a wingless male is a problem because they'll have a harder time finding a mate.

 

[CosbyArt]

Nope, his molting days are over (once they get their wings they are adult mantids and no longer molt (only nymphs do)). The wings are usually inflated and dried within hours, 24 hours at most so the wings are what they (they will not inflate anymore).

Interesting enough without seeing a video, the new wiggling he is doing is likely due to the wings. As nymphs they typically arch their abdomens and move it around for balance, but with wings that is no longer possible and they tend to walk differently - especially for awhile after they become adults as they have to adjust to it.

 

[H_Ercule_S]

But the females have 6 segments with the final one being larger than the rest on Niner, as well as thinner antenea. I thought that meant it was female? That is good news however thank you .

 

[Domanating]

But the females have 6 segments with the final one being larger than the rest on Niner, as well as thinner antenea. I thought that meant it was female? That is good news however thank you .

I could either be wrong and I'm seeing the most male looking female Mantis Religiosa I ever seen or you counted the segments wrong.

The female has thinner antennae alright but are way shorter than the ones in the pic. A female head should be substantially bigger and bulkier as well as the rest of the body. From that picture it all points to the opposite

Now that your mantis is an adult ignore the number of segments and focus on the end of the abdomen. Is it shaped as a pointy triangle or as some kind of spoon?

See this thread to help you understand what I mean

http://mantidforum.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=7110

 

[Mantis Man13]

Nice topic!

 

[H_Ercule_S]

I read the thread and understand it better now, apparently I was placing the wrong gender to what-to-look-for's. Tristen's the girl then, Niner's a boy lol

 

[Mantis Man13]

Ok good lol. How are they doing?

 

[H_Ercule_S]

Niner is fine, he's eating a grasshopper on my hand right now... severely hindering typing abilities... He has trouble with the carapace on the backs of grasshoppers so when he finally gets the head off he'll put his head all the way inside the body to eat it, its actually quite entertaining to watch heh. I assume it's because his mandibles are too small to crunch the back.