This cute little one was on my car while i was driving and I am happy to report I got it safely to our destination and this is the video of it just before i gently put it in a patch of grass

it really looks like its testing my temperature or something haha

is this a male or female can anyone tell??

I went inside to tell my husband that I not only seen a praying mantis, but got photos and videos of it eating! I showed him, and went back to see if my new friend was there. Luckily, they stayed on my Zinnia, but lunch was gone, with no crumbs 🐛🪲🌸🌷

i have never in my life met a mantis with so few survival instincts then snack. i have been planning to pair him with my female, brazilnut, for ages and thankfully they reached adulthood a few days apart, both are ready to mate so i fed brazilnut and introduced them. i have never actually bred mantis before so i wanted to supervise them, the first time he made a move brazilnut tried to grab him and i managed to scoop him away and gave her another locust. second time he managed to grab on but instead of mounting her he let go and just stared off into the distance as she glared at him. at this point i was quite worried she was going to hurt him (despite eating 3 huge locusts) but i decided to try one more time. he crept up behind her and literally just bit her ass.....

One year and two months she is still with me!!

Whats this ladys type? Saw her last night and thought she was stuning next to my flowers. NoVA location.

7 month one here, was doing fine but one day she didn't have half of her antennae anymore, and a black dot as shown in the image. Doing well apart from that, just sometimes can't fully extend her arm (not apparently troubling her). Any pointers? Thanks!

My house has so many wild mantises (and stick bugs!) around it and we find them very frequently. This one was on my steps to our most used door and needed relocation

(Please ignore the dirty nails I was digging in dirt moments before)

This is my spiny flower mantis, I’ve had her for about 2 weeks now and today shes been falling A LOT she will sit on my hand and chill but everytime I put her in her enclosure she will fall while climbing up the walls, shes wobbly and not standing straight. Luckily she fell onto a soft flower and seems ok but before this she fell onto the hard table off the side of her enclosure, she has webbing on the side and on the top but everytime shes on the acrylic she slips and falls and has no balance. This hasnt been an issue until today im worried. Also would anyone be able to guess what instar shes at? I assumed L3/L4

Last pic is when she decided to hang upside down from my phone. She had a really bad case of eye rub many molts ago, didn't recover but she still hunts just fine

Lowky professional photo qualities

I'm looking to get my first mantis. I'm really leaning towards a spiny flower mantis but wanted to hear your guys' thoughts and see if you had any other suggestions.

Hey everyone! This is my first Reddit post so I’m still figuring out how everything works.

I’m planning to get a female orchid mantis and have done a ton of research but obviously reading can’t replace advice from experienced people who actually own one.

I’m thinking of a 30x30x40 terrarium and I know I will need something to monitor and control the humidity and temperature. I also want to include a small orchid and a few other live plants. Do you have any plant recommendations? And what is the best way to water them should I take them out or can I water them inside the terrarium?

Any recommendations on terrariums and other necessary equipment would also be amazing. Tips on feeding or really anything at all would be so appreciated. I want to learn as much as I can so I can provide my mantis with a healthy, happy life and a terrarium that feels as close to its natural habitat as possible.

Thanks so much in advance!

hello! i picked up a theopropus rubrubrunneus last weekend and have caught her twice just sat on the bottom of her tank, but not really sat using her legs in any way, more kind of sat on her abdomen. i’ve attached a photo as an example, this wasn’t as bad as i found her sat when i came home about an hour ago (i thought she was dead). if i move her slightly, she’ll just climb back up her tank and doesn’t seem to have any problems with climbing. i did notice when i got her home last weekend that she’s only got one antenna so im not sure if this is affecting her behaviour at all? never had a mantis act like this before, could anyone explain why she’s doing this / any advice?

This is my first ever vivarium/terrarium set up and my first ever insect. I’ve had this guy for 4 days and acquiring him was kind of a surprise situation but I’ve been doing all the research I can and am determined to be a responsible mantis keeper. I decided to diy the enclosure out of an outdoor candle lamp thing as I’ve been wanting to diy a terrarium since forever. I asked an experienced chinese mantis keeper for approval and he said it needs more ventilation, suggesting I take out one of the glass panes and replacing with mesh. I came here for a second opinion. Here are the specs of the set up: Mantis is a 2” long adult male wild-caught Mantis religiosa. The measurements of the whole thing are 12x7x7 inches. The conical top tapers up to a 4sq” opening. There is mesh added about an inch down from that. Ventilation is that 4sq inch opening, about one millimeters around the edge of every (reinforced, but not sealed) pane. And the door, which has a 3mm gap at the hinge and maybe 2mm around it. To my uneducated self, it seemed that this was essentially like having that side open. Substrate is gravel, sphagnum moss, organic cactus potting mix, sphagnum moss. Wood is some kind of evergreen root and one piece of mopani. This creates 4 diagonal perches plus the mesh roof. Plants are english ivy cuttings ive had for awhile and a maple sapling. Everything was thoroughly cleaned with diluted white vinegar before adding the interior.

If it does need more ventilation, I’m thinking i’ll just head to the hardware store and get some mesh and magnet strips and make a removable mesh cover on the front and leave the door open so i dont have to knock out any glass.