terms!

[babynik14]

so i am new to this whole mantis thing i have had mine for about 2 months since she was tiiny.. and she has shed twice.. so what does L2 and L3 and all that mean??? mines an african female one.. any other info would be great..thanks

 

[OGIGA]

I don't now if you're familiar to the term "instar" but that's really all the L's mean. L1 is before any molts, L2 is after one molt, and so on. But once it's an adult (when it has wings), it's not a L anything anymore. L_ is before the mantis becomes adult. When it's adult, you can just call it adult.

 

[Way.Of.The.Mantis]

Ah that helps..ive been confused about that too. Useful post, thanks.

 

[OGIGA]

Awesome. You're welcome. Aren't forums great?

 

[babynik14]

do ALL mantids get wings?? the african ones??? and do they fly!?!..

 

[OGIGA]

I think all mantis gets wings. Some species may have smaller wings, some have bigger wings. Males can fly better with their wings because their body is smaller. Either way, they don't fly well in the first place. In fact, I don't think my female stagmomatis californica should fly at all because her abdomen is so large!