The cycle of life - it continues

[callisto9]

We brought Barry Mantilow, a Carolina Mantis, indoors last fall after we saw her on our front porch. I'd never seen a mantis on our property in the 11 years we've lived there. She was an amazing pet. We learned a LOT about mantids in a short amount of time. Before too long, she laid several ooths. Six, if I remember correctly. I took them out of her cage and glued them all to a piece of foamcore. I kept the ooths in the basement throughout the winter. Bruce, our Chinese mantis, also produced ooths.

I took all the ooth "strips" and nailed them upside down to our privacy fence so that they were facing the same direction as they were laid. I've been checking on them every day and last night, I saw my first baby mantis! Later in the evening, a second. You have no idea (well, I'm sure you do!) how excited I am!

Barry and Baby Barry:

 

[Mantis Lady]

Gratz on the hatch, hopefully more will follow

 

[MantisGirl13]

Yay! Congratulations. Watching nymphs hatch is so cool, especially when you know the mantis that laid the ooth!

- MantisGirl13

 

[River Dane]

Congratulations on the hatch! Fingers crossed for more babies. You have a beautiful girl, by the way, and that’s a really cute nymph.

 

[callisto9]

I’ll never forget my first mantis. I only wish we had Barry longer. Makes me happy knowing I might bump into her offspring in the yard now!

 

[Ocelotbren]

Congrats, having nymphs from a beloved mantis seems like a nice way to "keep her around".

 

[callisto9]

It's been reeeeeeally hard not to take one indoors and keep it as a pet. But they are so small that I don't know what I'd feed them. I might grab one later in the summer if I see one.

 

[MantisGirl13]

 You can always get some fruit flies to feed one or two of them! 

- MantisGirl13

 

[callisto9]

I had terrible luck with getting housefly pupae to hatch, and since I don't have a source locally, it's just hard for me to feed mantids that small.

 

[Mantis Lady]

you could order them online. I have done that for my nymphs too

 

[MantisGirl13]

Me too.

- MantisGirl13

 

[Predatorhousepet]

Keeping a fruit fly culture is super easy and far more practical than constantly buying pupae. You can order a pre-made culture online as the others suggested or catch wild fruit flies to make your own culture.  

 

[callisto9]

Thanks for the tips everyone. I'm just going to let nature take its course outside and if I stumble across one in late summer, I might bring one inside to keep as a pet. I've still got two Indonesian double shield mantids right now, so I'd rather focus my attention on those.

 

[MantisGirl13]

Alright, well have fun with those babies in the summer! There is nothing better than stumbling across a mantis nymph when you are least expecting it!

- MantisGirl13

 

[Mantis Lady]

Hope you will find one of this babies later in year when they are bigger so you can still keep 1 of Barry's offspring in your home.

 

[callisto9]

I hope so, too. I keep going back to look at the ooths. Hard to tell what's new, what's in progress and what's stuck and has died.

 

[MantisGirl13]

Have fun with your new babies!

- MantisGirl13