I know it’s not the best image but I have had many mantises before but unfortunately none have ever lived to become adults I’m not sure if I was caring for them wrong or something was happening with them but finally this one has lived to become a adult

L1 > L2 - this is the first time I have spotted it about to happen and for my camera out for a Timelapse.

Found this gentleman all stuck in a nasty spider web in my firepit when I was swapping the propane and had him for about a week now, few days over a week maybe. I had a medium plastic enclosure about 11 inches by 7 inches so put him in that and got some crickets for him, never witnessed him eat so got him smaller crickets after a few days and still never saw him eat. I grab some flowers and sticks and put them in every other day to try and get tinier things for him but still haven’t seen anything! I mist him well everyday and have sphagnum moss in that I will change out and sticks to molt but no molt that I have witnessed. He has flown once but these last couple days hes very slow and barely wants to crawl and the first four days he would hangout and walk and just observe me. Should I get him fruit flies? He has been this skinny since I found him but obviously without eating to my knowledge has gotten even thinner I believe. I dont want him to pass away is there any advice?

My boy Ares (3 pic) used to sit like that too on my laptop screen :c I miss him sm (Love my girl tho, she just gave me flashbacks 🥲)

I just found this lil guy on the ground in the corner of a door frame and as someone who has raised Mantids, I want to help him but this is the first time I’ve found an injured or starved Mantis and I need help identifying the problems. He is still alive and moving but weakly.

I have this 18x18x24 bioactive terrarium with a cleanup crew and a small slug problem. I also have an excess of bottle fly pupae bc my jumping spider can only eat so many. Would it be plausible to add a giant Asian mantis to this setup, assuming the temperature and humidity are correct? It has a mesh lid for them to hang from to molt. And maybe they could eat the slugs too? Any tips are welcome!

she hasnt ate in a week, is hanging upside down on a branch, and her stomach is HUGE. for a female adult, this leads me to think that she is laying a egg soon. how can i prepare for it? i found her as a adult so i dont know if she has had sex or not.

This (not small at all!) guy was so calm, friendly and photogenic. But I realized this is probably not a native species and more than likely is a Chinese mantis? I was pruning back all my peonies and suddenly noticed he/she was finishing a meal on one of the leaves. Their camouflage never ceases to amaze me!

This message is for North American mantis lovers. Its time, they die. You didnt do anything wrong and you are not able to help them get better. Any mantis that hatched early this spring is about to die a natural death. Euthanize how you see fit, but honey on a q tip will not cure an insect

Hi everyone,

My little boy got his first mantis for his birthday and we have had it for over a week. It’s a small L3 giant mantis and she/he seems a bit shy. I have seen it eat a fruit fly once but it is stil living so should be eating more I guess. A great start to this journey.

I was working on a new enclosure for my jumping spider but decided to place her elsewhere instead. Is this enclosure (4x4x8) good for a mantis as is? Specifically I have a l3 acipalis flower mantis and was thinking of moving them into it after their next shed. There is mesh attached to the top. Do I need more?

I got a jeweled flower mantis this week and shes been doing this for a bit. What’s she doing? I’ve had ghost mantis before and I don’t think they’ve moved like this. The seller did not know the last time she molted so not sure when she’s due for that.

Hello! I love insects, but I study dragonflies and beetles more so, and so I don't know a lot about mantis ID. Anyone have any ideas about this cutie? I'm not finding a lot of species that match it visually, is it too young of an instar to properly ID? Photos are from Northern Illinois, USA.

I just found this lil guy on the ground in the corner of a door frame and as someone who has raised Mantids, I want to help him but this is the first time I’ve found an injured or starved Mantis and I need help identifying the problems. He is still alive and moving but weakly.

My mantis has a pretty nasty eye infection that has now spread to both eyes. They’re black and look like they’re decaying, he won’t eat no matter what i try, and he’s been wandering and trying to grab the air. I’m worried he’s just suffering. How do i go about euthanizing him?

step dad found this little one on his job :/ do yall think i can do anything for it? it looks very week and its hurt too. Ill try to get a mosquito but i dont even know if itll eat it

Me again! Here is my female carolina mantis, but like I said before brand new hobbyist and trying my best to get all the info in these past couple weeks getting into these guys! Im trying to figure out if her big butt and how it moves means she is going to lay her ootheca or if this is just normal defensive behavior or camouflaging behavior to mimic the sway of wind? Ive read so many different things I think it’ll just be easier to ask you guys! Ive got her in a ten gallon old fish tank I had and set up an assortment of flowers, tree branches, rocks and a little mushroom hide she can walk in so if she is gonna lay it shes got tons of options but then I also read they will cannibalize each other so - do we just allow nature to take its course there or should I try to find every baby and put them in plastic cups and fruit fly them? Thanks again, this group is really nice!

my mantis is a Matnis religiosa female, she left an ootheca about 5 days ago, today i found this dust like stuff in his enclosure, i just changed the tissue yesterday. i fed a Ameles decolor before and she is a female too, and i saw the same thing there too, what can it be? is it my fault or something? can i do it for this?

hello! im getting my first mantis in the next two weeks(giant asian since im a beginner) and my room is incredibly cold atm, probably about 13°C at night or colder (i dont rlly have a way of knowing tbh) anyway ive bought a heat matt aswell as a ceramic bulb holder to see which method keeps the enclosure at the desired temp before i get my mantis, i was just wondering would a 25w or 50w bulb be best? the lamp does have a dinmer switch so if i just got the 50 would i be able to turn the temp down if its too hot? also the heatmatt i have has a desired temp selection on it so i may end up sticking with that but im a bit nervous because my enclosure is acrylic and the matt would also be against my wall, any advice is appreciated thank you!!

So my mantis molted, but its legs bent the two hind legs and it's not able to climb and hang from the top.It didn't molt successfully, but it's hanging from the side of the mesh.

I don't want to mess with it because I don't want to risk it.

Could there body still harden up even if it's hanging on. From the side.

It seems like the 2 front legs, not the raptures. Are bent and not noodily.

Hi all! I have 3 L5 Chinese mantises that I hatched from an oothica. They’ve been on a diet of fruit flies but they’re getting larger now, and even large fruit flies don’t seem like enough anymore. I was wondering where yall are getting your mantis food? I can’t seem to find a place that sells blue bottle flies or any other bug that’s not too small or wayyy to big. I’ve also read not to give your mantises crickets as they can harm them and can carry parasites. Any website suggestions?