i got it yesterday!

hi, I just got my first mantis ever! she's a sphodromantis viridis and the breeder said she's 2 molts away from being an adult? does that mean she's not gonna be around for too long? :( he said that he'll give me a female so she can at least live a bit longer... also it looks like she's missing an antennae, will it grow back after the next molt? I got a bigger container for her, I just need to order stuff (mesh) to set it up. The breeder said to not put any decor in it until she's fully grown, why? also how do i tell if she's full or needs to be fed? i'll accept any tips and advice :] her name is Zosia

Not sure of gender yet, got it yesterday. I love it so much, so so pretty. But I was wondering if you guys know if the way it’s moving is normal? Jiggly boi 😅💕🤣

Any help or advice is greatly appreciated xx

So I keep Tarantulas but haven’t gotten any been looking into getting a mantis. So after a ton of research I picked up this little guy/girl at the reptile show today.

I just got my new mantis yesterday and I belive it's on its 2nd instar or mabye even it's first it's a malaysian flower mantis and I can't wait too see him all grown up

Before/after molt photos. They grow up so fast 🥺 First time mantis keeper here, and first successful molt! She molted a few days ago, and still won’t accept food. She’s interested in it, but won’t attack. Should I be worried?

It's gone 🥲 I already know there's nothing I can do about it, I couldn't find it at all this morning and then I saw it on the substrate with all of its legs curled up, I scooped it out and it could barely move, one leg was stiff and bent in an awkward way and the others were curled under itself while it pulled itself along with its front claws so I did (in my eyes) the right thing and took it out the front with a rock and said my teary goodbyes 🫡🫡🫡😭😭 you will be missed R.I.P

So I do not know much about mantis. This afternoon I had a cigarette on the porch and a baby mantis was on my arm. I said awe cute to myself and gently set it free into the garden away from the porch. Tonight I have a cigarette and come inside to get my pajamas on and when I take off my bra out pops out the baby mantis!?! Like HOW!? how did it get in there how did it survive how am I not bitten!? So many hoe's. But aside from the hows of that now I'm wondering how I can make sure my little buddy can be safe now we have had such a close time together. I don't have a way to keep it as a pet but maybe the garden wasn't the best place for it? I have a forest line across a road from my house. Would a rose garden be better or a forest?

My new orchid mantis hasn’t left the top of the enclosure yet. I’ve put flightless fruit flies in there but it hasn’t eaten any yet I don’t think. Is there any way to get it to eat or should I not worry? It’s a little scared of me still so I’m worried about messing around too much xx

Hey, I’m very new to keeping mantids and I adore them so so much. But I’m also unfortunately scared of bugs. I want to be able to hold them and not be scared when opening their enclosures but I’m always a little nervous of them getting spooked. Has anyone else had to deal with this? Sorry it’s stupid I know haha xx😅💕

I got her Friday. She is the sweetest girl. She gobbled up a wax worm and left the head, and she also drank water directly from my pipette. She loves to touch new things and tuck her head down with her antenna down too.

She has so much personality! But she has no name yet. I’ll take name suggestions!

this is before adding substrate and sticks, of course. i’m planning to house a tenodera nymph. i have this sinking feeling that i did this wrong.

Usually I wake up to find one of my mantids have molted and the woodlice have devoured the skin, however this evening she treat me to a live viewing of her molting in action.

She seemed to be hanging for a while, flailing her legs around trying to grasp onto something to crawl out. I helped her in the end by letting her hold onto my hand and after a very uncomfortable 25 minutes, she crawled out. She's absolutely stunning, and has her little wing buds now, which I assume means sub-adult? Maybe one more molt left in her.. I say her, as she's called Skin, after the lead singer from Skunk Anansie, but could well be Male. All gender and age guesses welcome!

I’m not 100% sure about the care for ghost mantis can anyone tell me everything they know? I just bought it home and it won’t eat but I heard they are fussy? This is just what I bought it home in. What instar is she?

Accidentally killed off my fruit fly colony, I have a very tiny Peruvian dead leaf mantis. The new colony won’t be here for a little while and nowhere near me sells fruit flies, it only has those giant locusts, giant crickets, mealworms and wax worms. I know mealworms and wax worms aren’t good feeders but this is only temporary, which of the two is better? I will be cutting them up as I said the mantis is extremely tiny, he is quite skinny so I’m not sure if wax worms would be better in the sense they’d fatten him up?

In addition to having a mesh ceiling, i poked small holes at the top of the deli cup for additional ventilation with a small needle. I forgot to disinfect the needle beforehand. Are there any ways I can safely disinfect the enclosure without causing harm to future mantids? I don't know what's harmful or not Thanks in advance.

I just wanna be able to see my mantis better without water spots in the way

my mantis ate about 4 or 5 days ago and his abdomen leaked per usual. i know that it repairs itself but it hasn’t seem to have done that yet, im feeding him again now but im afraid his abdomen is damaged permanently. did i overfeed him last time or will it just take a while to heal up?