Very Weak?

[PrayingMantisPets]

Yesterday my sub adult female spiny flower mantis was perfectly fine. She was even dancing and spreading her arms out! This morning i found her on the roof of her container. (I left around 12:30.) Once i came back (around 9:00) i noticed that she was very weak and on the floor of her container. I thought to myself. If i was weak and tired, what would i need? FOOD!!! But the first thing i fed her was some honey and water. I then pierced a meal worm with a needle and tried to feed her. She refused the offer.

Her bud wings are swollen, so she is close to her adult molt. Could this be a side affect?

 

[Machinar94]

If her bud wings are swollen and she is not eating, I would say she is getting ready to moult. I have noticed that they become quite sluggish and weak as they come closer to moulting, as I think they are storing the energy to complete the process. She may have fallen from the roof as she was preparing, so maybe try to carefully put her back up and hope that she has a successful moult.

 

[PrayingMantisPets]

If her bud wings are swollen and she is not eating, I would say she is getting ready to moult. I have noticed that they become quite sluggish and weak as they come closer to moulting, as I think they are storing the energy to complete the process. She may have fallen from the roof as she was preparing, so maybe try to carefully put her back up and hope that she has a successful moult.

She is doing much better after her honey and water. I can now say that she is very very close to her adult molt. I am very excited and nervous!

 

[LAME]

If her bud wings are swollen and she is not eating, I would say she is getting ready to moult. I have noticed that they become quite sluggish and weak as they come closer to moulting, as I think they are storing the energy to complete the process. She may have fallen from the roof as she was preparing, so maybe try to carefully put her back up and hope that she has a successful moult.

+1However, I've had numerous mantids just hang out on the ground until they were ready to crawl back up to molt.

 

[MantisMatt14]

I have had this happen with my sub girl. She was fine and then she would not eat and then grow very weak. I honestly do not know what went wrong.

 

[PrayingMantisPets]

Well it must have been some pre molting symptoms because she molted....lol. Thanks everyone for the response!

 

[Machinar94]

Congratulations, and no worries!

 

[PrayingMantisPets]

Well, i steped out of the room for a second to make breakfast. I came back to see my cat amusing herself with the container. She knocked the container onto my bed. But she seems to be ok. Just a little bent on her wing :/

 

[SkittishMale]

I had a subadult female P. wahlbergii that was in premolt for almost a week and she had me scared because she seemed to have been getting slimmer and weaker and I thought she wasn't going to make it. Then all of a sudden she molted into adulthood!