will mantids eat cicadas?

[Digger]

Wow, Rick. Fat girl ! Was she prego?

 

[angelofdeathzz]

They're very loud, they make unique sound at high decibels, so finding them isn't that hard. But when they're 20 ft up a tree, thats another story.

How did he get by the filter? Hey he did it so he shouldn't get any warning points as a prize!

 

[Malakyoma]

They're very loud, they make unique sound at high decibels, so finding them isn't that hard. But when they're 20 ft up a tree, thats another story.

How did he get by the filter? Hey he did it so he shouldn't get any warning points as a prize!

Thats what I'm thinking about is when they're up in the trees. When do they come down? How can I get them before they go up there, or when they come down? I have a lot of big mantids that would feast on those.

 

[sally]

I don't think that we in the Midwest get cicadas this time. It's for the east coast.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magicicada#Broods

. Yes that is what it said on the news East coast... But I get some in my yard maybe I'll try one or two.. for the mantids not me lol

 

[Digger]

Can't answer for Eastern Canada. Here in NJ / PA, there are SO many, you can easily find tons that lose their footing and fall off the tree. Or capture those just starting to climb. They're everywhere. driveways, stairwells, on your grill, chasing your neighbor's wife.. You won't have a problem collection them.

 

[sally]

I have cicada killer nests all over my and my neighbor's yards. I catch em every year for fun. Never got stung! The big 4 inch females are crazy! Anyway i bet my aggressive orchid female would take some down

. I never saw a cicadas killer. I will look it up

 

[Ambystoma]

Not to mention at the end of their season they slow way down. I remember being in Ohio for one and seeing half dead cicadas littering the sidewalks. If there is a big emergence you will have no trouble.

 

[sally]

Can't answer for Eastern Canada. Here in NJ / PA, there are SO many, you can easily find tons that lose their footing and fall off the tree. Or capture those just starting to climb. They're everywhere. driveways, stairwells, on your grill, chasing your neighbor's wife.. You won't have a problem collection them.

lol yes it showed a person walking through them. They were up to their ankles in cicadas as the cicadas were emerging out of the ground.

 

[Digger]

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2013/03/the-cicadas-are-coming.html

Good introduction to the invasion. Mike M. - you may not get the full force of the brood up there, according to this.

 

[aNisip]

I have cicada killer nests all over my and my neighbor's yards. I catch em every year for fun. Never got stung! The big 4 inch females are crazy! Anyway i bet my aggressive orchid female would take some down

Can u send me a nest?! Please! I would love some! (seriously, lol) When they are emerging...it is a super easy meal for the mantids...

 

[mantid_mike]

Wish I could catch those here in LA. The only time I've seen them is when I'd go to the desert a couple of hours away on family trips when I was a little kid. (Palm Springs, CA)

 

[Tony C]

Can u send me a nest?! Please! I would love some! (seriously, lol)

Their nests are underground tunnels, not the typical paper wasp nest.

 

[Rick]

Wow, Rick. Fat girl ! Was she prego?

All adult females are pregnant technically speaking.

 

[Sticky]

Darn! The pbs link says they a re not going to come out here in Maine!

 

[Introvertebrate]

Thats what I'm thinking about is when they're up in the trees. When do they come down? How can I get them before they go up there, or when they come down? I have a lot of big mantids that would feast on those.

Pretty much the only time they're near the ground is when the larvae first emerge and then shed into cicadas. Some sort of net over the ground might catch a few before they fly away. I see the larvae skins attached to trees and houses, so they don't morph until they get a few feet above the ground. Occasionally I'll find a mature cicada on the front porch in the morning. They're attracted to the light at night. In the morning, they're still cool and sluggish, so you can sneak up on them and catch them by hand. Once they warm up they fly back up to the tree tops.