Substrate you use!

[Gurd]

Actually never knew that. I will do some research and may change if that is the case.

The rate that peat forms is roughly 1cm every 10yrs and with the extraction increasing for horticultural uses over the past decade or so it has become a more endangered habitat. I know there has been a move away from peat based products in horticulture but I just hope its not too little too late

 

[Nick Heath]

Just looking for ideas as to what you guys use at the bottom, would a sponge work?

Hi Stu,my name is Nick and ive recently joined the forum after years of reading it and keeping many species of mantid...i didnt join sooner as ive always been a 'watcher' if you like,i like to see what people are saying first before i state my opinion.

With regards to your question,i personally use kitchen towel for nymphs & ooth's,draped down one side of the container-it is great for creating humidity and also acts as a surface to which the mantid can cling to,or that the food item(s) can climb up. Ive used moss etc but it just dries out too fast for me and food items always got hidden amongst it. The kitchen towel (white) also makes a useful background when checking the mantid for problems.

For adults,i use the following methods; for Sphodromantis and other desert/dry species i use a thin layer of bird sand. Its clean and cheap and allows me to hoover waste out of the container easily. It also allows the heat from the heatmat to rise unhindered.

For adult mantids that require a moderate amount of humidity i use either coconut fibre (which i think is superb) or thick kitchen towel placed at the front of the container AWAY from direct heat (thus it dries out more slowly)..i have found this as good as anything and is certainly very clean.

For species that require high levels of humidity (this is where i have encountered most problems) i have settled on using half an inch of damp orchid bark covered with an inch of damp coco fibre,and then a further layer of damp orchid bark on top of this and a partial (50%) covering of the ventilation panel at the top of my viv's. This has allowed me to keep 70-90% humidity with ease and i have yet to have any problems with mould in years of keeping mantids.

Incidentally,i use Yeo Valley yoghurt pots (clear plasic with clear lid) for housing L3 and upwards and my own home made glass vivs for adults,i hope to post some pics of these soon....apologies for long reply!

 

[Stuart89]

Hi Stu,my name is Nick and ive recently joined the forum after years of reading it and keeping many species of mantid...i didnt join sooner as ive always been a 'watcher' if you like,i like to see what people are saying first before i state my opinion.With regards to your question,i personally use kitchen towel for nymphs & ooth's,draped down one side of the container-it is great for creating humidity and also acts as a surface to which the mantid can cling to,or that the food item(s) can climb up. Ive used moss etc but it just dries out too fast for me and food items always got hidden amongst it. The kitchen towel (white) also makes a useful background when checking the mantid for problems.

For adults,i use the following methods; for Sphodromantis and other desert/dry species i use a thin layer of bird sand. Its clean and cheap and allows me to hoover waste out of the container easily. It also allows the heat from the heatmat to rise unhindered.

For adult mantids that require a moderate amount of humidity i use either coconut fibre (which i think is superb) or thick kitchen towel placed at the front of the container AWAY from direct heat (thus it dries out more slowly)..i have found this as good as anything and is certainly very clean.

For species that require high levels of humidity (this is where i have encountered most problems) i have settled on using half an inch of damp orchid bark covered with an inch of damp coco fibre,and then a further layer of damp orchid bark on top of this and a partial (50%) covering of the ventilation panel at the top of my viv's. This has allowed me to keep 70-90% humidity with ease and i have yet to have any problems with mould in years of keeping mantids.

Incidentally,i use Yeo Valley yoghurt pots (clear plasic with clear lid) for housing L3 and upwards and my own home made glass vivs for adults,i hope to post some pics of these soon....apologies for long reply!

Great reply! Very detailed and informative, you should register and introduce yourself mate, it seems like you have a lot to offer the forum! Will look out for the pics!

 

[mr nick]

Great reply! Very detailed and informative, you should register and introduce yourself mate, it seems like you have a lot to offer the forum! Will look out for the pics!

you're welcome..i will get round to it soon,got quite alot to talk about but little spare time..incidentally,im off to Thailand and Malaysia in Oct/Nov and im absolutely sure i will be on the lookout for ooth's,ha,ha..but mainly for recreational purposes,ha,ha.

 

[pedro92]

I think humidity foam is the best. This is why

Humidity foam

Pros:

1. Neat no loose objects

2. Holds water good

3. Food cannot dig into it and hide

4. You can pull them out rinse, squeeze, and put back in.

Cons:

No natural look

Cannot fit any container or cage

Moss.

Pros:

Natural Look.

Good humid holder

Cons:

Loose object

Food can go under or in the moss

Can mold easily without proper ventilation

If mantid strikes food on moss then they could possibly grab moss also.

Coco Fiber

Pros:

Natural look

It says it cant mold but not sure

Cons:

Very messy

Mantids will need to clean more often if they go on the ground

food can burrow

It dries out somewhat fast i think

These are just what i have found when i tried it and other results may happen depending on situations. I hope this helps any.

 

[Birdfly]

I use tissue/kitchen roll with every thing: ootheca, nymphs and adults, (unless im setting up a multi species vivarium, not just mantids) it lends itself perfectly to however you have to keep mantids.

More humidity = more depth of tissue & spray.

Less humidity = less tissue & less spraying.

If its pressed into the base when wetted it pretty much stays like it and prey is less likely to hide under it if you feed crickets, roaches and meal worms.

It becomes obvious when its soiled, especially white tissue and is easily changed with out carving out great chunks of the countryside.

Its also cheap as chips

 

[xxtittlexx]

Hi im a new member and mantis owner. ive been using coconut substrate for about a week now and its great its held moisture since i hydrated it from a brick (which is a bit messy) and its good for nymphs that eat fruit flies because they are not the smartest of creatures and tend to go to the top of the enclosure as opposed to burrowing.

 

[PhilinYuma]

Hi im a new member and mantis owner. ive been using coconut substrate for about a week now and its great its held moisture since i hydrated it from a brick (which is a bit messy) and its good for nymphs that eat fruit flies because they are not the smartest of creatures and tend to go to the top of the enclosure as opposed to burrowing.

Yeah, it and sphagnum moss have the big advantage that they hold moisture longer than for any other substrate. I have about six pots that use sphagnum, but I shant continue with it because crickets and roaches hide in it and sometimes hide well enough to die in there. I think (and many don't) that humidity for mantids is greatly overrated. Some folks only mist their pots every other day, and I am not sure why increased humidity for 6 hours or so out of 48 can be that important. One good side effect of muisting pots may be, though, that while evaporating, water vapour helps circulate the air in the pot. I like to use paper towels, as described above, except that I just fold half of a sheet until it fits in the bottom of the pot. I mist each pot (three squirts) once per day, but when I was away, recently, for eight days, the mantids seemed none the worse for wear on my return.

 

[kmsgameboy]

Just looking for ideas as to what you guys use at the bottom, would a sponge work?

I use wood chips...like what you put in your garden. You can get a HUGE bag for $5 and it sokes up and holds water great!

 

[ismart]

I use plain white bounty paper towel as my substrate. Bounty holds the most moisture out of all the paper towels. I always use white to better help gage how clean my enclosures are. Not to mention if you buy it on sale it's pretty cheap!

 

[Katnapper]

I use tissue/kitchen roll with every thing: ootheca, nymphs and adults, (unless im setting up a multi species vivarium, not just mantids) it lends itself perfectly to however you have to keep mantids.More humidity = more depth of tissue & spray.

Less humidity = less tissue & less spraying.

If its pressed into the base when wetted it pretty much stays like it and prey is less likely to hide under it if you feed crickets, roaches and meal worms.

It becomes obvious when its soiled, especially white tissue and is easily changed with out carving out great chunks of the countryside.

Its also cheap as chips

+1

I use plain white bounty paper towel as my substrate. Bounty holds the most moisture out of all the paper towels. I always use white to better help gage how clean my enclosures are. Not to mention if you buy it on sale it's pretty cheap!

+1

 

[PhilinYuma]

I use plain white bounty paper towel as my substrate. Bounty holds the most moisture out of all the paper towels. I always use white to better help gage how clean my enclosures are. Not to mention if you buy it on sale it's pretty cheap!

So Bounty is better than the store brand? I'll have to try it. I used to use Brawny, but then they changed Mr. Brawny's pic and the mantids didn't seem to like it as much.

 

[ismart]

So Bounty is better than the store brand? I'll have to try it. I used to use Brawny, but then they changed Mr. Brawny's pic and the mantids didn't seem to like it as much.

didn't they change Brawny's picture to all brolick, and diesel looking? I would be scared too! :lol:

I find Bounty to be the most absorbant thus far!

 

[massaman]

I just use common plain ole dirt for all my mantids and works well for me since i hardly ever mist my insects at all and have had no problems with mold or fungus or anything like that