Toxodera sp.

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Some detail pics of the T.beieri, please excuse the blurry pics cause I don't have any tripods and my shaking just doesn't help ;) .

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Tbc..

 
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LOL MIB III, anyway she's approximately 10-12cm long, haven't really measured her head to toe (or abdomen in this case ;) ) . As for the molt part, I too think she has 1 more to go.

 
Mantis dictator said:
Wow, those pictures are truly amazing!! Are Toxo's hard to find the wild? I've heard they are quite rare, or is it just due to their extreme camouflage?

Thanks.
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They're not rare, just very difficult to spot in the wild due to their extreme camouflage.

 
Rareness is a relative trait; compared to most other species of a habitat they are rare, though not the rarest of all. Camouflage is only partially the reason they are rarely found.

To avoid contradictions I should explain this: Species abundance curves in the tropics (of samples e.g.) show a few abundant species, a few that are not common and a lot which are uncommon (with only one specimen in a sample). This is best achieved with sampling procedures that are independent from the human eye, as we tend to have a biased "searching procedure". Such more or less unbiased procedures are light-trapping or fogging. Size also plays a role, as larger species are rarer than smaller ones. All this taken together gives us a good hint of what is rare and what not, irrespective of the human perspective. As such, Toxos are rare, as they never or only rarely show up in samples. I have examined two light trap samples over two weeks and 6 weeks respectively and only one Toxoderid was found (curiously in the two week sample). I also examined fogging samples over 12 years and no Toxoderid showed up so far. But these samples really gave me a hint what is common in that area and what not and it was rather contradicting to what humans tend to find when they search there.

 
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Christian said:
Rareness is a relative trait; compared to most other species of a habitat they are rare, though not the rarest of all. Camouflage is only partially the reason they are rarely found.

To avoid contradictions I should explain this: Species abundance curves in the tropics (of samples e.g.) show a few abundant species, a few that are not common and a lot which are uncommon (with only one specimen in a sample). This is best achieved with sampling procedures that are independent from the human eye, as we tend to have a biased "searching procedure". Such more or less unbiased procedures are light-trapping or fogging. Size also plays a role, as larger species are rarer than smaller ones. All this taken together gives us a good hint of what is rare and what not, irrespective of the human perspective. As such, Toxos are rare, as they never or only rarely show up in samples. I have examined two light trap samples over two weeks and 6 weeks respectively and only one Toxoderid was found (curiously in the two week sample). I also examined fogging samples over 12 years and no Toxoderid showed up so far. But these samples really gave me a hint what is common in that area and what not and it was rather contradicting to what humans tend to find when they search there.
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Very interesting and thanks for sharing this info Christian. I've been told by the Orang Asli about 'seasons' like how they'll find a lot of certain species of mantids in one season, one of them being Toxodera sp. and how they can't find anything during the rest of the year. I'm beginning to think that certain tropical species also have a kind of diapause going on. For example, species such as H. coronatus and T. elegans can be found in abundance during December-April while species such as D. lobata can be found all year roung according to the Orang Asli. I'm not sure about this though but what do you think?

 
This is true. But it's not due to diapause but to generation length and overlap. Most rainfores mantid species have two generations a year, some smaller ones even more, so that due to overlap it seems like they have no season, particularly if they are abundant and there is no severe dry season. Other species (mostly larger ones) have only one generation, and those are only found as adults at a certain time of the year. Generations are not discrete in the wet tropics, nevertheless there is a time when most specimens of a certain developmental stage can be found. Generations tend to be shorter in captivity due to better food supply and a lack of unfavorable climate conditions.

Sometimes a species may give us the impression as if there is only one generation a year, but in fact there are two, the second one being less abundant or isn't descending to heights where humans find them (or the collectors have other things to do). Most such things aren't studied in detail yet and probably will never be due to habitat loss.

 
Christian said:
This is true. But it's not due to diapause but to generation length and overlap. Most rainfores mantid species have two generations a year, some smaller ones even more, so that due to overlap it seems like they have no season, particularly if they are abundant and there is no severe dry season. Other species (mostly larger ones) have only one generation, and those are only found as adults at a certain time of the year. Generations are not discrete in the wet tropics, nevertheless there is a time when most specimens of a certain developmental stage can be found. Generations tend to be shorter in captivity due to better food supply and a lack of unfavorable climate conditions.

Sometimes a species may give us the impression as if there is only one generation a year, but in fact there are two, the second one being less abundant or isn't descending to heights where humans find them (or the collectors have other things to do). Most such things aren't studied in detail yet and probably will never be due to habitat loss.
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This is very interesting! Thanks for sharing. What's happening in Malaysia and Indonesia is very sad. Singapore used to have H. coronatus but now it's unheard of. This is most definitely due to deforestation. The same thing is happening in Malaysia and Indonesia although their nature reserves are much bigger than Singapore itself.

What's sadder is the fact that there are probably zero or a handful of breeders in these countries. Mantids get collected and sold to dealers who'd either sell or let their mantids die immediately so that they can sell expensive framed specimens. This is causing a rapid decline in mantis population in the wild. My only hope is that more S.E. Asians become interested in actually breeding these mantids so that at least they won't go extinct due to habitat loss.

I've met a Malaysian dealer who has hundreds of dead mantis specimens. He has a rack full of Metallyticus sp. and Toxodera sp. When I told him that his specimens are beautiful and perfect, he casually told me that he killed the mantids because the pinned specimens won't be as beautiful if the mantids die a natural death. That's just disgusting.

 

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