Here you will find answers to some of your questions about keeping and possibly breeding exotic insects such as praying mantises (Mantis) at home. Just look at this photo of a praying mantis... Many exotic lovers would like to have one of these in their home. I would like to note right away that keeping exotic animals (and even more so tropical insects) is not an easy task, but quite interesting. That is why it is necessary to read as many articles as possible about keeping pets (insects) at home.
How many years do praying mantises live at home?
Since mantises are a whole group of insects with many varieties, the maximum age of a mantis depends on its species. Large species usually live longer than smaller ones. In addition, females tend to live longer than males. When purchasing a larva, it will take 4 to 6 months to reach maturity. The adult will live for another 3-8 months. By keeping the praying mantis in relatively cool conditions and not feeding it a lot, its lifespan can be significantly extended. But remember that too low temperature may lead to death.
There are many pets: dogs, cats, cows, goats... Is it legal to keep praying mantises as pets?
This is not prohibited in Russia. In some US states it is illegal to possess exotic species animals, including tropical species of mantises. Endemic species can be kept as pets. In any case, you must comply with the laws of your country.
Is it true that you can go to jail for killing this insect?
No, that's not true. This is an old American joke. Although there are a lot of “strange” laws coming out now, especially in the West, so it doesn’t hurt to find out more about this if you live in the European Union or North America.
Often children themselves want and even promise that they will take care of pets, but caring for insects is not like walking the dog. So the question is: can a child care for a praying mantis?
Yes, when the child is under adult supervision. However, already at the age of 11-12 years, a child should be able to care for a praying mantis without the help of elders. For the youngest child It's best to help with feeding, regulating temperature and humidity, and cleaning and checking your pet's health.
We noticed that our exotic insect does not touch food at home. The praying mantis doesn't want to eat, what's wrong with it?
The praying mantis will not eat for several days before shedding its old skin. The molting process occurs. This is normal for many insects. After shedding, he will start eating again. If the mantis does not eat when not molting, offer it various types production In general, there is no need to worry, praying mantises can live for two weeks without food.
What are the signs that a praying mantis will moult soon?
For several days before molting, the mantis will hang upside down and not eat. Sometimes whitish stripes can be seen above the body of the mantis. As the mantis emerges from its larval state or becomes an adult, you will notice that the bulges above the wings (the area where the larva will grow wings) have become larger in volume.
Can a praying mantis bite a person or cause harm in some other way? In other words, are praying mantises dangerous for humans?
Although this is a very rare occurrence, the insect may grab your fingers and bite you. This happens if he thinks that your finger is prey. And, of course, this only happens if the mantis is enough large sizes to cover the finger. It is very easy to pick up a praying mantis without it biting you. In addition, they are not poisonous.
What are the signs that a praying mantis is considered an adult?
Most species have the same characteristics: adults have wings, while nymphs do not. Some species never grow wings, although this is rare.
Westerners love to keep various exotic animals as pets. After all, cats and dogs won’t surprise anyone anymore. Exotic insects, including praying mantises and stick insects, cannot leave exotic lovers indifferent. Therefore, if you have a desire to keep praying mantises at home, then this is quite feasible, because as such special care they don't need it.
These days, praying mantises are increasingly kept as pets. Such insects do not exude unpleasant odors, do not make annoying sounds. They do not require much space in the apartment. Let's find out what it means to keep a praying mantis at home? What are the subtleties of caring for such a pet?
Where can I get a praying mantis and how much does it cost?
Before we figure out what are the features of keeping a praying mantis at home, a photo of which can be seen in our article, let’s find out where to get such an unusual pet. These predators can be seen in some exotic animal stores. Alternative option favors online shopping.
People who have not previously kept insects should pay attention to the African mantis, which is easy to care for and will cost relatively little - about 500 rubles. For comparison, the same one costs about 3,000 rubles. The most beautiful, unusual and expensive is the species called the devil's flower. The price of such a pet is from 10 thousand rubles.
What do praying mantises eat?
What is the maintenance and feeding of a praying mantis at home? Proper feeding is of particular importance. In the warm season, moths, butterflies, and grasshoppers, which you can independently catch on the street, can become food for such a pet. As for the natural habitat of these predators, here they do not disdain even stinging insects, such as wasps and bees.
Keeping a praying mantis at home in winter requires purchasing food from a pet supply store. Khrushchev larvae, all kinds of crickets, caterpillars, cockroaches, and bloodworms are suitable. Some of these insects are worth trying to grow at home. However, you should not catch ordinary Prussians for the praying mantis, as they may be infected with chemicals. Spiders are often dangerous for such a pet, as some of them are poisonous.
Features of feeding
It’s worth noting right away that the process of a praying mantis eating prey is an interesting spectacle. This predator prefers to carefully disassemble its prey piece by piece, slowly chewing individual pieces and throwing hard chitin aside.
You can offer food to your pet in several ways: by introducing victims into its home or serving it with tweezers. If preference is given to the first option, then the insect that is used as feeding must be lightly pressed down in advance. This will make it easier for the praying mantis to catch moving prey. Be that as it may, for this predator it is extremely important that the prey is alive.
It is imperative to check whether your pet eats all the food offered. For example, bloodworms and caterpillars dry out too quickly. Their decomposing remains can cause infections to spread. Therefore, all insect debris must be removed from the mantis’s home.
An important principle of keeping a praying mantis at home is its restriction in food. Adults are extremely voracious. Overfed mantises may die as a result of damage to the abdomen. It is also necessary to take into account that the more food such a person consumes predatory insect, the shorter his life will last.
Where should you place your pet?
Keeping a praying mantis at home requires preparing a special home. Most suitable option looks like a terrarium with good ventilation. The minimum parameters of such a container should be 15x15x20 centimeters. The interior space should not be empty. All kinds of twigs need to be placed here. After all, the praying mantis needs objects on which it can crawl. Artificial or live plants would be a good decoration.
The simplest and most affordable home for such a pet is a regular plastic container. You can also use glass aquarium. In the latter case, it will be possible to freely observe the behavior of the insect. If you plan to keep praying mantises at home for the purpose of breeding them, you need to take care of preparing several terrariums. After all, these predators are capable of demonstrating rather aggressive behavior towards their relatives.
Praying mantises love warmth. A comfortable temperature in their home should be maintained at a level not lower than 23 o C. An ordinary light bulb, which will also serve as lighting, would be a good heater. If you wish, you can spend money on buying a heating pad. However, you need to keep in mind that heat is also detrimental to praying mantises. It is important that the temperature in the insect’s home does not exceed 30 o C. The use of a small thermometer, which can be attached to the wall of the terrarium, will allow you to control the situation.
How to feed a praying mantis?
Like any other living beings, such an insect will need access to moisture. For these purposes, you can use a container with a sprayer, with which it is enough to spray water on the walls of your pet’s home. In addition, to prevent the praying mantis from feeling thirsty, a small lid filled with liquid should be placed in the terrarium. Next to such a drinker you should place several sticks that the insect can hold on to.
Is the praying mantis dangerous for humans?
Despite their predatory nature, such pets are not capable of harming their owner. Praying mantises are absolutely not poisonous. Only in some cases can these insects perceive a human finger as potential prey. However, their jaws are too weak to bite through the skin and cause significant pain.
There are several tips for keeping it at home:
- You should be careful when handling your pet. Under no circumstances should you allow an insect to fall from a great height. Otherwise, the praying mantis may receive injuries that will lead to its death.
- The more often people are near the terrarium, the faster the insect will become domesticated. To prevent such a pet from showing aggression towards others and not feeling fear, it needs to be picked up periodically.
- It is necessary to ensure that excess liquid does not accumulate in the mantis’s home. This omission can lead to the development of pathogens in the substrate and attract small insect pests.
- It is much better to spend your energy on raising a pet yourself than to purchase an adult one. In this case, keeping a praying mantis at home will be much more enjoyable.
The domestic praying mantis is a very unusual pet to keep at home. This insect is graceful, quick-witted and very interesting to watch. In addition, it is a dangerous predator for insects living in your home, such as cockroaches and crickets, because mantises belong to the class of carnivorous insects.
Most mantises live on continents with tropical climates, but sometimes you can find some representatives in the northern parts of the earth. Grasshoppers and stick insects are related to them. All these types of insects, including praying mantises, are subject to several stages of metamorphosis, which transform them into adults. The domestic praying mantis is a rare pet even in the homes of extravagant breeders, but today we will talk about it. So, let's highlight a few main points that should be considered when keeping a praying mantis at home.
A little about the insect
An adult praying mantis can be quite large in size - his length may be ten and more centimeters.
The color of this insect can be yellow, green, light brown or other, V dependencies from environment habitat. Having ability To mimicry from nature, mantis Maybe merge with branches, plants And stones having a similar color, and therefore it will be very difficult to notice.
He has a triangular, highly mobile head, which he can rotate 180 degrees. The front legs are well developed with sharp spines, with which it grabs its prey and holds it while eating. The praying mantis also has wings, but it flies very poorly, so most often it sits motionless in one place, waiting for prey.
The lifespan of a domestic mantis is about two months, but individual species, according to some sources, can live for about a year.
Temperature
Since insects are tropical inhabitants, accordingly, it is necessary to keep a praying mantis at home in temperature conditions from 20 to 25°C, while also observing the required humidity regime. Maintaining humidity in the praying mantis cage is not difficult, just spray water over the cage once a day, this will be enough.
How does a domestic praying mantis feed?
What to feed a praying mantis at home? Such pets prefer aphids, flies, and other insects of suitable size. Young individuals grow very quickly, provided that the owner feeds them well.
Many representatives of mantises can show aggression towards their relatives, so cannibalism is quite possible, especially if there is a significant difference in size between individuals. Pet praying mantises can also consume insects that are the same size, or perhaps even larger than themselves.
Praying mantises do not drink water in most cases; however, a container of water should be placed where they are kept. This will also serve as a source of moisture to maintain the desired microclimate. If there is no container, a necessary condition will be spraying water to provide humidity.
Housing conditions
During the stages of its development, the praying mantis tends to shed its skin, thus increasing in size. For individuals that have just been born, a small container will be an excellent home, but for teenagers you can use a jar or something similar in size. The temporary housing of young mantises should be covered with film, after making a hole in it for feeding. A necessary condition is the presence of branches in a container, which should be exactly three times larger in size than the young growth.
Features of reproduction
When kept at home, a young mantis has almost no gender difference, but adult individuals can be easily recognized due to the fact that males have eight lobes on the abdomen, but females have only six. Before insects begin to mate, they must be fed with a large amount of food, while being separated from each other. To prevent the male from becoming food for the female, a large container is needed where the breeding process will take place. The whole action may take several minutes or days, but the presence of food is required. After mating is over, the male is separated from the female.
A female can produce eggs ranging from 30 to 300 eggs. The larvae will be born in an interval of 3 to 6 months, but they may not all hatch at once.
The main nuance for keeping praying mantises at home is the presence of a large container for their habitat, which must necessarily contain live food, as well as the opportunity for its inhabitants to hide. By observing these requirements, cannibalism will be excluded, however, after the insects have moulted several times, they must be seated.
If you want to get yourself an unusual insect, then a domestic praying mantis is ideal. This insect is undemanding in maintenance and does not take up much space. Such a pet can be caught in wildlife or purchase it at a pet store.
And if you haven’t yet chosen a pet to match yours, pay attention to the terrible one - the hero of Hollywood horror films or his eternal enemy -.
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Having a cat or dog at home is common, but the same cannot be said about this exotic tenant. An infrequent inhabitant of home terrariums is a representative of the fauna with the unusual name of the orchid mantis. The article is devoted to the peculiarities of insect life and care.
These insects, one of the most beautiful representatives of the genus Hymenopus coronatus, were named after the orchid because they have a similar coloration. In addition, thanks to the special body structure of mantises, shape mimicry is manifested - they perfectly imitate a flower while sitting on a branch.
The body of the female is about 6 cm long, the males are half as long. Males have 8 abdominal segments, females have six.
Adult insects are colored white with pink, blue and golden shades. The pink orchid mantis is especially beautiful.
Young larvae are colored red and black, which deters potential predators. Adult insects fly well. Females live longer than males. The hind legs of orchid mantises are flat and wide, shaped very much like flower petals.
Habitat in nature
Orchid mantises naturally inhabit the tropical forests of India and Indonesia, Sumatra, Borneo, Thailand and Malaysia.
One of the advantages of praying mantises is that they are difficult to find among branches and grass.
Insects live and hunt among orchids, perfectly imitating flowers thanks to their unique color.
A careless butterfly or a curious fly, sitting on an insect that can easily be confused with a flower, will immediately be grabbed by its dexterous forelimbs, similar to two claws with sharp teeth.
Interesting facts related to insects
Mantises living in a home terrarium are interesting to watch.
Knowing interesting facts about insects, it is easier to understand their behavior:
- Mantises wash themselves frequently to keep the numerous spines on their forelimbs clean. A little dirt left behind after insect hunting can cause infection.
- The praying mantis can turn its head 180 degrees, comfortably viewing what is happening behind itself.
- Living surrounded by flowers of a certain color, insects acquire the same colors and shades that are characteristic of plants. This mechanism in nature allows predators to create unique camouflage.
- During molting, praying mantises need high humidity air, they cannot free themselves from the old skin until it gets wet.
- Males have well-developed wings and fly well. Females do this very reluctantly due to their impressive body size.
- For her eggs, the female builds a real architectural work with many compartments - an ooteca. It holds several hundred eggs. The eggs are placed in separate capsules in several rows, and filled with frozen protein material. They are not afraid of slight frosts and even pesticides.
Insects prefer to spend most of their free time hanging upside down from the ceiling of the terrarium.
Keeping an orchid mantis at home
The dwelling for the praying mantis should be at least three times its height. Its top is made of mesh for ventilation. At the bottom you can place some houseplant. The praying mantis loves light, but its home should not be placed in direct sun.
In order to create comfortable conditions pet, a heating lamp is placed in the terrarium. Optimal temperature air +30 degrees.
Praying mantises grow quickly, but their lifespan is short. In nature they live 50–60 days, and in captivity they live from 5 months to 1 year. Insects are unpretentious in food, but voracious. Successful keeping at home requires compliance with two conditions - the food must be alive and not exceed half the size of the mantis itself. The larvae of various beetles and flies are eaten with pleasure. Adult mantises need to be fed once every 2 days. The less they eat, the longer they live.
Insect Reproduction
Despite the short lifespan, average price for one praying mantis about 1 thousand rubles. But these insects are very fertile, and the female can lay up to 300 eggs at a time.
The main thing that everyone knows about praying mantises is that during mating, the female bites off the male’s head. She needs a lot of protein to carry her eggs, so she dines with her partner. In captivity, a well-fed insect can behave this way only in exceptional cases; the main thing is not to forget to feed it on time.
If mating is successful, the female orchid mantis lays her first ooteca within a week.
Small nymphs appear after 30–60 days at an air temperature of about 30 degrees and high humidity. The warmer it is, the faster the offspring will appear.
The tiny praying mantises are placed in a separate terrarium and fed fruit flies. As they grow up, they will have to go through several molts.
The praying mantis is perfect pet, which will rid the house of flies and cockroaches and relieve stress for the owner. Insects are happy to make contact with humans; they are very beautiful and completely harmless.
