gregdabender
New Member
You really take some awesome pictures.....those mantis just freak me out
some different mantis species
- Thread starter macro junkie
- Start date
Jerm
Avid Member
yer i know..that sucks big time/nice orchid mantis.i have managed to get shot of 1st instar orhid mantis yet..im surprised u have?if you buy them from good breeders they wont sale them till there L3..by that time they have lost there orange and jet black colour..they then get very pink untill adult when they loose most of there colour unless your lucky..some of them stay pink when they shed to adult.only some tho.
Thanks. You have some great pictures. These actually changed to white and pink in their L2 stage from what I can remember. I may be wrong. I got the orchids so young because they came from a friend of mine who lives very close to me, so I picked them up early. These were from his female's last oothica and he didn't have many so everyone wanted them. I have a few more pics of them in their 1st instar stage:
If you look closely in the first one, you can see the red eyes of the fruitfly that it is eating-
If you guys are wondering what we are talking about when we say 1st instar, this red mantis is a nymph of the orchid mantis and looks like this until it sheds for the first time, then turning white and pink, which is then in its second instar, which can also be described as L1 and L2..., and so on until they are adults. Some mantids go through a lot of different colors and patterns during each instar stage before becoming adults. This is the same nymph that as the above photos after shedding:
There are more changes after this one, and when they mature they look like Macro Junkie's photo of the adults which are completely different.
JoshCrane1
New Member
i bet my chams would love to chomp on that bad boy!!!lol
sandrachameleon
Chameleon Enthusiast
Love the photos. Mantids are too beautiful and just plain cool to use as feeders. I bought some for fun and for my greenhouse, thinking that if I got babies I'd use some as feeders. Then I became fasinated with them - safe to say any that hatch from the egg cases will now NOT be feeders. Plus its easier to feed the chams directly whatever the mantids are eating, rather than two steps of feeding bug to mantid then mantid to cham.
SoCaliSon
Avid Member
*Applause*
Wow!!! Those have to be the coolest shots I have seen on the forum to date. Incredible...simply incredible. I felt like I was looking at shots from a published Photography book on Mantids. Keep those awesome shots coming!
Edit: I am curious what a nice Macro flash ends up running.
~Joe
Wow!!!
Those have to be the coolest shots I have seen on the forum to date. Incredible...simply incredible. I felt like I was looking at shots from a published Photography book on Mantids. Keep those awesome shots coming! Edit: I am curious what a nice Macro flash ends up running.
~Joe
Jerm
Avid Member
I actually don't have an expensive camera for my shots, you can see that his photos are clearer than mine. I use a Nikon Coolpix L3 point and shoot digital camera that I paid $60 for at a pawn shop
. It just takes really good photos for what it is. Im sure the Macro flash is pricey but you have more control over what you are doing. Mine has a macro setting on it but it is an auto focus camera so it is hard to focus on your subjects.
macro junkie
New Member
yer your right..but they get pinker from 2nd - 3rd instar..im so jealous..one day il have the pleasure of shooting 1st instar orchids
macro junkie
New Member
it would//but because they cost a min of 20$ each per nymphs there's no way my chameleon is going to be eaten them.
i do feed mantids to my charmeloen or to other mantids..only if its crippled tho and cant walk or eat.
macro junkie
New Member
i agree..only time i feed my mantids to other mantids is if there crippled and had a bad shed.
As I've always said:
Feeding my mantids to my pet chameleon would be like feeding my chameleons to my pet boomslang.
Great photos junkie! I've got some mantid photos but they pale in comparison to yours. I want that flash!
yer this flash is good.also mr-14ex wil give u just the same lighten but half the price.*Applause*
Wow!!!
Edit: I am curious what a nice Macro flash ends up running.
~Joe
mayby one day i can make money from my photograery..iv yet to sale a single image
i use
canon 400d slr
canon mt-24ex twin macro flash
canon mpe-65 1-5x macro lens(only used for high mag macro shots)
and for the bigger shots like full body shots of chaloems i use canon 60mm macro lens
I actually don't have an expensive camera for my shots, you can see that his photos are clearer than mine. I use a Nikon Coolpix L3 point and shoot digital camera that I paid $60 for at a pawn shop
yer it cost a bit..macro flash cost me 1000$..mpe-65 macro lens was another 1000$..worth every penny tho..its the best macro flash and macro lens on the market.its the omnyl macro lens that goes past 1:1 life size.nikon are still using bellows..LOL
macro junkie
New Member
about a year from hatching.when they hit adult they live for any from from 3months-6months.
macro junkie
New Member
thanks..i have lots lots more to show u
macro junkie
New Member
odontomantis planiceps
odontomantis planiceps - asian ant mantis
any one who has had a 2 pence pecie in there hand they will understand how small these ants are when they hatch
funny storie behind this one..i took pics of it then thought it was dead..5 hours later walk past the becker and notice its not on the ooth any more..hmmm? so i go to bed.wake up next day and see it walking on my bedroom wall.lol.i put him back in with the rest,i wanted to get pic of it emerging but i was sure it was dead..lol
adult female
sub adult odontomantis planiceps - antmantis
newly shed adult
adult female 4:1 life size
odontomantis planiceps - asian ant mantis
any one who has had a 2 pence pecie in there hand they will understand how small these ants are when they hatch
funny storie behind this one..i took pics of it then thought it was dead..5 hours later walk past the becker and notice its not on the ooth any more..hmmm? so i go to bed.wake up next day and see it walking on my bedroom wall.lol.i put him back in with the rest,i wanted to get pic of it emerging but i was sure it was dead..lol
adult female
sub adult odontomantis planiceps - antmantis
newly shed adult
adult female 4:1 life size
Jerm
Avid Member
Check this out...
Have you seen this guys work? Your photography reminds me of his. You guys would probably get along well.
http://photo.net/photos/siwanowicz
Have you seen this guys work? Your photography reminds me of his. You guys would probably get along well.
http://photo.net/photos/siwanowicz
macro junkie
New Member
yer igor..he work is 10x better than mine..im getting there tho..the reason his work stands out is he uses backgrounds that hes made him self..his works is really good..but hes been doing it a few years now iv only been doing it for 1 year.
Jerm
Avid Member
I wouldn't say 10x, you are closer than you think. I think that you are comparable. When I saw your photos it reminded me of him right away. He does some extra work to some of his and is very skilled at it. You are doing well for only 1 year.
macro junkie
New Member
well if u look at my gallery now which i only upload my best pictures your see i am progressing http://www.flickr.com/photos/hooked_on_macro/
I was poking around the web trying to find out what species of Mantis I found today at a state park in Florida. The photos on this thread are simply AWESOME! No other word for it. I've always loved mantids, and it was cool to see one in the wild.
I took some shots with my P&S camera. Maybe somebody can identify this one.
Who knows, I might become a chameleon owner some day. I just started a gecko habitat with a baby I found in the office. I've had it for a month now, and it's starting to get a little bigger.
Anyway, here's a (crappy) pic of the mantis I found today. I think it's a
Gonatista grisea - Grizzled mantid (lichen mimic)
I took some shots with my P&S camera. Maybe somebody can identify this one.
Who knows, I might become a chameleon owner some day. I just started a gecko habitat with a baby I found in the office. I've had it for a month now, and it's starting to get a little bigger.
Anyway, here's a (crappy) pic of the mantis I found today. I think it's a
Gonatista grisea - Grizzled mantid (lichen mimic)
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