Well
after the BBC interview, I had two more phone calls, on from the Gazette,
and one from ITV West. Well you can see my interview with ITV West,
at http://www.itvlocal.com/west/
(Just watch the report on their home page, it's about a minute in.)
For those of you in the West who buy the Gazette, you may have seen
me in it this week.
On
more insect related note, lots of pairs of Pseudocreobotra coming
in, as well as sub adult Phyllocrania, Blepharopsis and lots more
Boxer mantis. Will update when they've arrived.
Those
who have been active on the forums may know
that I had an interview with BBC wiltshire
last week. Well, it's going out on air today.
If you don't have the chance the listen to
it, you can always check out the "listen
again" feature on the BBC radio Wiltshire
website. There is also an article on the BBC
wiltshire website, which glosses over what
was discussed on the radio. Anyway, you can
check it all out here: www.bbc.co.uk/wiltshire
One might not imagine
keeping an insect such as a praying mantis as a household pet, but for
many, it is a great interest. Are you bored of the usual cats and dogs?
Would you like an alternative pet? If so, a praying mantis is for you!
These can be kept happily indoors, in enclosures stimulating their natural
environment. If you are unsure how to create this environment for your
praying mantis, then see the care section (to the left) for more details. The praying
mantis is a very tame insect, and tolerant to handling, however, frequent
handling can cause stress. Feeding on small insects such as crickets,
or cockroaches, available from your local pet store, their diet is very
easy to satisfy.
How
easy are praying mantids to care for?
The praying mantis in general is
a very easy species to keep. There are hundreds of different species of
praying mantis available in captivity, some of which are easy, but some
of which are very hard. The hard part for the more exotic species, is
providing the correct climate in the enclosure, one like in their natural
habitat. Without this, praying mantids are prone to disease, infection,
and mostly death. However, when you purchase your praying mantis from
Mantisinc Insect Store you will be advised on its level of keeping. Insectstore
offer a wide range of species that are very easy to care for, and perfect
for the beginner. Species such as the Pseudocreobotra Wahlbergii (Spiny
Flower Mantis) are a great species. They are very easy to keep, tolerant
to a range of temperatures and humidity, and at the same time, a beautiful
specimen.
Where can I get captive bred praying mantids and advice from?
The answer to that is right here! Not only does
Insectstore offer a range of praying mantids and ootheca (eggs pods) all
year round, but also advice on how to keep mantids. Upon purchase, Insectstore
guarantees a constant help line via email, answering any questions or
queries you might have in keeping your praying mantis. Not only do you
have constant email advice, but you can feel free to phone for advice
(pelase contact for more details.) You will also be provided with detailed
care sheets on many different species of praying mantis, and if you require
further help, a forum to post up any queries, and leave it to the team
of praying mantis hobbyists to help you out!
The
sale of praying mantids is relatively new, with the marketing having grown
dramatically in the past 5 years or so. You will find many places online
offering praing mantids for sale, however not all of these will be genuine.
A typical scam will involve African or Nigerian sellers who give out huge
lists of many different exotic species of mantis for sale. The majority
of these sellers will no bear any species at all, and in fact, not even
be in contact with anyone who owns these species. So, care must be taken
when purchasing off of a supplier without a legitimate looking website,
or high seller reputation.
Praying mantids are
very easy to maintain as an exotic pet, and make great home or classroom
pets. They can be rearing in small tanks, with no need for any fancy furnishings
or other expensive decor or equipment. They make excellent pets for children
or early learners, especially species such as the Giant Asian mantis (Hierodula
species) or African mantis (Sphodromantis species). These are typical
mantids, and bear the well known praying mantis stance, with the large
green body, and arms folded in a praying position. Species range dramatically,
from large, bright species, to very small cryptic species, mimicing leaves
and flowers. The mimicing species of praying mantis are generally more
difficult to look after than the plain species, however this is not always
the case. Species such as the Indian flower mantis (Creobroter species)
are very exotic looking, but the are as easy to care for as an African
mantis species. Many people choose their praying mantis judging by their
looks, but is often wise to choose them regarding how easy the are to
keep. For this, I have provided several care sheets to the left. Also,
a database of most praying mantis species kept in captivity is listed
below, and should be finished in coming weeks.
Praying mantids are
often used as pest control insects. They are used widely in the United
States, and egg pods (oothecae) can be purchased from most garden centre's
in the correct season. The UK climate is a little harsh to keep praying
mantids outside, however with some species, it is potentially possible.
Attempts have been made to raer such insects outisde, but the introduction
of the mantis into the UK wilderness would be against current laws.
Here is a list of
species you might expect to see in culture:
There can
be a lot of confusion about which mantids are which, as so many get wrongly
named, or generally mis-identified in captivity. So, the following is just a
description of what each of these species look like. I would liek to include
photos, but there is simply to many species, of which the majority, I have never
kept.
Acanthops
Falcata - Tropical Dead Leaf -
All
Acanthops species are somewhat odd, they are small and crumpled, and usually
fold their abdomens very tightly. They are a chocolate brown in colour, with
mottled markings. Wings cover the whole abdomen in both sexes. These are an
EXTREMELY good leaf mimic!
Acromantis
Sp. - Boxer Mantis -
Usually
a brown/beige colour, bearing a low stance. Males and females both have wings,
with a breen stripe running down the side of each females wings. Large raptorial
forearms give the Acromantis their famous name of "boxer mantis".
Ameles
Decolor -
A
VERY small mantis, plain brown in colour. Females only sprout small wing buds,
wheras males will grow wings which cover the abdomen. Ootheca are tiny, usually
no longer/wider than 1cm.
Blepharopsis
Mendica - Thistle Mantis -
As
the name indicates, this mantis looks like a thistle. It's abdomen is covered
in many rubbery spines, and a mottled blue/green/white effect to help the disguise.
Some adults can grow to a bright breen colour, however some remain a beige colour.
Both males and females possess fully grown wings.
Brunneria
Borealis - Stick Mantis -
A
very slender mantis, looking more like a phasmid. Females are parthenogentic,
so can breed successfully without mating. Females possess small wing buds, whereas
males will grow full wings.
Choeradodis
-
This
has the be the most awesome leaf mimic species ever! Also known as the hooded
mantis, the Choreododis bears a huge shield, and a very rounded wing case. They
stay very flat, and close to the ground, perfecting the leaf mimic.
Cilnia
Humeralis -
A
fairly large, plain looking species. Adult females bear a wing case that stretches
about two thirds of the way down her abdomen. Her raptorial forearms are very
large, and look almost top heavy. They bear a lime breen colour, with a slightly
darker colour wing case.
Creobroter
-
The Creobroter
family is one of the "award winning" flower mimics. With vibrant target
like markings on their wing case, striped legs, and a stiff stance, the Creobroter
is amazing for it's small size. Males and females both have fully grown wings,
with females being much wider than males.
Deroplatys
-
The dead
leaf mantis looks just as you would expect; a dead leaf. With crumpled leg and
adbominal projections, and a very cryptic looking wingcase (stretching across
the whole adbomen), these dark brown specimens make an excellent camoflague.
Empusa
-
A long,
thin, spindly looking manid. Slightly cryptic, and young looking like that of
the Gongylus, the Empusa appears quite easy to identify. Females bear a large
horn on their head, and both have a large breen wingcase stretching to the end
of the abdomen.
Euchomenella
-
The
Euchomenella species are twig mimics, bearing a long, slender stance. Females
will only grow small wing buds, wheras males will grow full wings. They take
a mottled borwn colour.
More
coming soon!
Stick insect (phasmid) care sheets - Thanks to Chris Pull for
these wonderful caresheets!
Aretaon
Asperrimus (Sabah Thorny Stick Insect)
Females are
broad and spiny. They are dark brown in general, with a crème stripe
running along their back. The males are similar, but they have slightly longer
spines and are a lot skinnier. The spines are red-tipped.
Large spiny
species. Dark chocolate brown, verging on black. Sexes similar, males smaller,
and have two very large spines on their two back femurs, used defensively. Their
two back legs are very muscular because of this. Females are much more gentle
than males, and don’t have the two femur spines.
Females olive
green to brown, with red patches on their inner front legs. Males light brown.
I should mention that males are non-existent in culture, although occasionally
a male-look-a-like female is produced.
Very beautiful
species. Females have small appendages all over the body, and are mottled green,
black and grey, in a lichen effect. Abdomen is quite large when swollen with
ova. They appear to have two ‘devil-horns’ on their head. Males
similar, but much more skinny. Both sexes have small wings, useless for flight,
but are used to deter predators. They are bright orange, fringed with a black
border and white dots.
Long antennae
in both species. Females black an yellow or black and orange. Males scarlet
with black legs. Small beady black eyes. Females have a very rotund abdomen
when laying. Eggs, which are disc shaped, are grey and black when dry, but reddish-black
when wet.
Bache-fleshy
pink colored insect. Typical Sipyloidea body structure i.e. a short body and
very slender legs. Fully functional wings, which are slightly pink. Little eyes,
which protrude both sides of the head. Eggs are brown and grey and cylindrical.
Very stick like! The one I hold I my hand as
I write this is a mottled grey, with small black tubercles all over the thorax.
Antennae are very long, and there are small appendages on the tarsi of the front
legs. The small, rudimentary wings, used to scare predators are bright scarlet,
with black lines running out from the base. Very psychedelic! When at rest all
legs are snapped close to body, and front legs are outstretch forward.
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veiled chameleon, mellers chameleon, casqued chameleon, jacksons chameleon,
panther chameleon, leopard gecko, stick insects, phasmids, mantids, mantids
for sale, tarantualas for sale, red eyed tree frog, corn snake, giant asian
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