ciafardo 4
New Member
Does anyone ever feed mantis to their chams
Praying mantis as a feeder
- Thread starter ciafardo 4
- Start date
ciafardo 4
New Member
They do they tuck their chins in and put their dukes up but they dont stand a chance
ciafardo 4
New Member
Do you think the points on the (claws?) could be harmful that worried me a bit
ciafardo 4
New Member
Whats wrong with that haha just kidden
dodolah
Retired Moderator
sure thing.
They can fight back.
I only feed my chameleon the hatchlings and baby mantises.
Once they grow adult i just keep them.
If i have too much, i just release them in my garden.
the only annoying part is the gutloading process.
1st you gutload the crickets/ flies
then you feed them to your mantis
then you feed the mantis to your cham.
mczoo
Avid Member
better as pets
i bought them to feed but now my wife and children have grown attached and are raising them on wild caught bugs, crikets and even little silkies.
they are cool bugs but in order to feed them in any quantity or size the must be separated.
i find flies give more bang for my buck as alternative feeder for appetite stimulation
Sean
i bought them to feed but now my wife and children have grown attached and are raising them on wild caught bugs, crikets and even little silkies.
they are cool bugs but in order to feed them in any quantity or size the must be separated.
i find flies give more bang for my buck as alternative feeder for appetite stimulation
Sean
Me too, I own a couple of species of mantids.
I've seen the nasty spikes on their forearms and its about ten times worse than a locust.
I personally wouldnt feed them.
addicted
Established Member
SoCaliSon
Avid Member
I was bartending a private party last Saturday night and as I reached down to grab the martini shaker an awesome, HUGE, mantis crawled right onto my hand before I had even notices he was there. It had no prob just letting me handle it. I had the birthday girls daughter run and grab something to keep it in so I could take it home for my Chameleons. From that point on I had every child at the party standing next to the bar asking every possible question you could think of about Chameleons while I mixed drinks. It was pretty cool.
Chuck G
Avid Member
You were serving children drinks?
Ryan Jarosek
New Member
SoCaliSon
Avid Member
I saw a 6 year old take down two shots of Crown like it was Robustussen, and ask for another.
HAHA...No No No... Getting the parents drunk... and entertaining their kids by answering animal questions.
I would love to see a how to on keeping Mantids as pets/feeders. Sounds like they must be housed alone?
HAHA...No No No... Getting the parents drunk... and entertaining their kids by answering animal questions.
I would love to see a how to on keeping Mantids as pets/feeders. Sounds like they must be housed alone?
SSimsswiSS
Avid Member
Raising them is very labor intensive, 
so I don't do that anymore. But I do come acoss them from time to time, and do feed them off. Newly hatched are a great treat for pygmy's in the spring. I caught a good sized adult last fall, at a gas station. He was on the box, by the price/ gal. ticker screen, at the pump I just happen to pull up to. Not his lucky day.
so I don't do that anymore. But I do come acoss them from time to time, and do feed them off. Newly hatched are a great treat for pygmy's in the spring. I caught a good sized adult last fall, at a gas station. He was on the box, by the price/ gal. ticker screen, at the pump I just happen to pull up to. Not his lucky day.
dodolah
Retired Moderator
I'm assuming you will b getting common european mantis religiosa or chinese praying mantis (you can get the ooth at local nursery).
TAKEN FROM: http://mantiskingdom.com/index.php?main_page=page&id=8&chapter=1
Mantis Caresheets
This is general care information pertaining to most mantid species. Click on the links on the left for more detailed care for those specific species. If you have some information that is important that I seem to have missed, please email me and I will add it.
Housing:
I would suggest a container that is at least 2 times the width and 2 and a half times the height of the mantid. You must give it enough space to molt. Keep in mind that if you have sticks and leaves in the enclosure, the height from the lid to the sticks is what needs to be 2 and a half times the length of the mantid. Unless you are sure that your mantids are a communal species, I would not recommend keeping them together in one enclosure. You also should not put the mantid in too big of an enclosure. A half-inch mantid nymph may have a really difficult time finding food in a 10 gallon tank filled with plants, unless of course you are adding a large amount of food.
Feeding:
You should feed your mantis on its natural foods (flies, butterflies, moths) as much as possible if you can. I use fruit flies for hatchlings. These can be purchased from many places on the web. Check out my links section to see where I get mine. There are 2 different types of fruit flies that you can use: Drosophila melanogaster and Drosophila hydei. I usually keep mantids together at L1 until about L3. D. melanogaster multiply fast, so there is always a good supply if you are feeding many nymphs. Drosophila hydei are a larger species of fruit fly, longer life and slower reproduction. I myself prefer to use hydei as I have found that most nymphs are able to handle these just fine even at L1. They provide a larger meal, and so less feeding is needed. Do your research on the species of mantid that you have so you know its size. Some species, such as S. pretiosa and Otomantis sp. (boxer mantid) need smaller prey and have a very hard time handling D. hydei. Around L4 and up, I try to feed a variety of insects, such as moths, houseflies, roaches, and the occasional cricket or mealworm. The best of these are the flies and moths as these are more of its natural foods. To feed mealworms to mantids, I crush the head of the mealworms, and put the head of the mealworm to the mantids mouth. They will start to eat it, and then grab it from your hand. Use tweezers if you have some around. If possible, keep the feeding to mostly flies and moths/butterflies (basically flying insects). Check my links section for places where you can buy these.
Molting:
Most of the time, you will notice when your mantid is near molting. It will stop eating, and seem to ignore prey. That is usually the easiest way to tell when your mantis is about to shed within the next day or 2. It may also strike at the prey, seemingly missing it, but it is only trying to scare off the prey. If this occurs, take any food out of the container, as you don't want anything interrupting your mantids molt. When your mantid starts to shed, do not bother it, don't pick up the container to get a better look, and definitely don't try to assist it. The mantid will shed its skin and sit there hanging for a bit to dry off. Do not feed the mantis for about 24 hours after it molts, but its ok to spray the container as long as your not spraying directly on the mantid after it molts as you want it to be able to dry correctly. Molting happens approximately every 2 weeks, and increases after each molt, and the final molt usually takes around 4 weeks or longer depending on species.
Mating:
Two weeks after their final molt, your mantids MAY be ready to mate. Some say to wait for 3 or even 4 weeks, but I usually wait two. Some say to introduce the female into the males container, as he knows his area already. I choose to let the male into the females container. I put some food in for her, and when she starts to eat, I set the male into the container. It's usually instant that the male notices the female, and begins to make his move towards her. But it can take a few minutes to a few hours, even days for him to make his move, so be patient. I personally stay there and keep an eye on them until mating commences. I don't have too much patience, so if they don't begin mating within 30 minutes, I remove the male and try later. If the female tries to attack the male or is not receptive at all, I wait a few days to a week before reintroducing them. I also make sure to introduce them in a good sized tank. A 10 gallon tank or bigger with a few branches would suffice. After mating, the male will need space to run away from the female, or she may eat him. Mating can take a few hours, and unless you plan to be there watching the whole time, give your male some sprinting room.
Ootheca:
Depending on how long you waited to mate your female and how well fed she is, she may start laying ootheca 1 day to 2 weeks after mating. She may lay them on the lid of the enclosure or on sticks provided for her. Keep the ootheca at the same humidity and temps that you would the adult mantid, and around 4-6 weeks later, it will hatch and the cycle begins all over again.
