spiders cant crawl up deli cup?

[Opivy]

Recently I've tried to feed my mantis small spiders I've found, and I noticed that they can't crawl up to the lid where the mantis is. And the mantis seems reluctant to come down to the spider, so I normally take it out before too long.

Will the mantis eventually crawl down to the spider?

 

[Emile.Wilson]

It depends on the species of mantis, if it will actually chase down prey.

 

[Rick]

Some will go after prey. Be careful though that the spider isn't in there long enough to make a web. It won't hurt anything but could get all over the mantis.

 

[pizzuti]

What kind of spiders do you feed it?

I've always been too scared to use spiders because the spider could bite and kill the mantis. In your experience mantids have been able to eat spiders without being bitten?

 

[PhilinYuma]

Recently I've tried to feed my mantis small spiders I've found, and I noticed that they can't crawl up to the lid where the mantis is. And the mantis seems reluctant to come down to the spider, so I normally take it out before too long.Will the mantis eventually crawl down to the spider?

It is really a good idea to have a couple of twigs in each pot, Opivy, which reach almost to the top of the lid. These allow your spiders, crix and some roaches that can't climb the sides to pop up and visit with the mantis on the lid. You will also find that many mantids use the twigs to position themselves to catch prey.

 

[Opivy]

Thanks for the advice everyone! And Phil, my dad has been telling me to do the same thing hehe. I just figured it might be a slight hassle to have twigs in there.

And to Pizzuti, I've been feeding it spiders for a couple days now - pretty big ones too. I just find them around the house or outside. I was scared at first too, but they seem to be able to take them down even if they are close to the same size.

Got a really big one I found last night, I'll see how that goes tonight. I think I'll video tape it.

 

[-MK-]

The few spiders I've caught easily climbed up the deli cups. I guess it depends on the species? From what I've learned on this forum, mantids seem to be pretty good at sizing up other critters before attacking them, and they'll quickly drop them if they suddenly change their mind about the battle they've chosen - I've seen plenty of behavior from my Chinese mantids that supports this.

Also, my Chinese mantids won't hesitate to climb down to grab their prey if they're hungry - sometimes they even jump! And sometimes they actually manage to land on the target and grab it on the first try. :lol: In any case, they manage to catch dinner and usually climb back up to the top while eating.