Time between meals for some nymphs?

[djpersnikity]

So due to an unforeseeable incident I accidentally received my beautiful new L2/L3 ghost nymphs almost 5 days before my food was due to arrive (little mix up on the shipping, D'oh!).

When I unboxed them I came face to face with 13 very, very hungry mantids (flat grumbly tummies all around... well... except for the 2 who resorted to cannibalism) and in a frenzy that night I spent a couple of hours squashing wax worms and hand feeding with a toothpick.

Needless to say, that isn't a fun thing to do.

I repeated the same thing again on the 2nd day after (So, I have been feeding them every other day you see) and now I am due to feed them again tonight... and... ugh...

Before these comments inevitably come, yes I did look for alternative food sources. My neighborhood petco does not carry fruit flies and they have refused to order them for me... because evidently this one does not do special orders... yeah... I did set out 2 different fruit fly traps to attempt to catch some food source (one the funnel design and one the cling wrap with holes design) and haven't caught anything in 2 days. I haven't been able to find crickets small enough anywhere near me. Just... ugh... all in all it has been a very frustrating 5 days.

My package with my fruit fly cultures is set to arrive some time tomorrow (or so says the tracking info) so I guess my question is this...

TL;DR

How long could L2 and L3 ghost mantids go without food? They were last fed on the 22nd (and I fed them until they refused to take anymore and their abdomens were fat), so can I put off feeding until noon tomorrow when I get some proper food for them?

Or should I get off my lazy butt and just get to it?

 

[BugLover]

If they are nice and plump, they should be fine

 

[djpersnikity]

hmm... they do not appear to be nice and plump :/

But then again I am not sure of how nutritious waxworms are for them... ::sigh:: I guess I should just stop being lazy and just do it...

 

[twolfe]

I've never gone that long without feeding mine fruit flies, but one one occasion, I had a package I shipped get misrouted, and all the nymphs survived several days in transit. They weren't ghosts though. Petcos around here don't sell fruit flies either, and neither do the reptile pet stores that I contacted. I've used aphids as emergency food a few years ago, and about half of my mantid species would eat them.

Keep them hydrated.

 

[patrickfraser]

Are these being kept together? If they can't find something to eat...and they are hungry enough, they might eat a sibling. Especially the 2 that have "already had a taste".

 

[Termite48]

Only once this happened, but nonetheless it did. I sent 10 Ghost nymphs to a Canada destination and they were hung up in the mail with Customs also involved. They lasted ten days with just a few flies in each cup. Not good for them, but they made it.

 

[djpersnikity]

No, I have each of them in separate cups (because of the cannibalism incident). I went ahead and fed the 5 thinnest ones (well my fiance did... poor guy... he accidentally dropped a cup on one of them and now is very upset D: ) so hopefully they will be fine until around noon tomorrow. I will update (they should make it I think) and now I must go and console my fiance. Night everybody and thank you for the responses.

 

[djpersnikity]

So, 2 days between meals is evidently ok for L1-L3 nymphs

Everybody made it!