snitz427
Chameleon Enthusiast
I have recently started gathering, buying, and hatching mantis to feed the Chameleons. Originally, I had decided that Raising mantids would be too much work and too little reward. But I found mantis ooths over the winter at my local park and decided to give them a try.…
Over the winter it was easy to spot ooths on the bare tree limbs. They tend to be on the outer branches and tips of grasses, and easily snipped off without serious damage to the plants. They can also be fully removed from the branch, without cutting, but there is a risk of crushing them, so care must be taken.
I placed the ooths in the fridge, where they should keep well until the end of summer. My first batch went so well I ordered 100 more ooths on eBay. eBay definitely seems to be the spot to buy them inexpensively - just be sure to do it over winter so they don’t hatch!
For the first batch I placed Them individually in tall, sealed deli cups. I kept the cups at room temperature and exposed to natural light changes. As the temperatures were on the cooler side, it took about 4-6 weeks for the ooths to hatch.
The first ooth was a Carolina Mantis, which is a bit smaller ooth and insect than the Chinese Mantis. They were about the size of 2 week old, or 1/8th” crickets. I sprinkled them into the kinyongia cages and the babies went to town! Success!
Next I placed a Chinese Ooth in each enclosure. Hatching times varies wildly, also between 4-6 weeks... since they were at the bottom, cooler part of the cages.
One morning I found Clarice acting very strange near the bottom of her cage. I was concerned and upon investigation found that the baby mantids hatched and she was in a precarious position trying to snipe them before they even dropped out of the ooth! Delicious!!!
Now i’m hooked. Some chams enjoy them more (or faster) than others... but all seem to snack on the little guys freely. After a few days, they do begin to cannibalize each other. I have occasional soil gnats and super annoying white flies... so the mantids will help with natural pest patrol in the enclosures until they meet their untimely fate.
The Chinese Mantids are a tad bit bigger initially, but seem to grow twice as fast as the Carolinas. I have a few in the enclosures that are about the size of a black soldier fly now. I doubt any will make it to adult size, but if they had - the adult carolina mantids are a good feeder size, whereas adult chinese mantids, especially females, will likely be too large for anything other than (maybe) a Parsons.
My advice is to just throw the ooths in the cage (try to orient them so the babies can dangle down as rhey would hatching from a branch). They dont need any special care or feeding from that point.
Over the winter it was easy to spot ooths on the bare tree limbs. They tend to be on the outer branches and tips of grasses, and easily snipped off without serious damage to the plants. They can also be fully removed from the branch, without cutting, but there is a risk of crushing them, so care must be taken.
I placed the ooths in the fridge, where they should keep well until the end of summer. My first batch went so well I ordered 100 more ooths on eBay. eBay definitely seems to be the spot to buy them inexpensively - just be sure to do it over winter so they don’t hatch!
For the first batch I placed Them individually in tall, sealed deli cups. I kept the cups at room temperature and exposed to natural light changes. As the temperatures were on the cooler side, it took about 4-6 weeks for the ooths to hatch.
The first ooth was a Carolina Mantis, which is a bit smaller ooth and insect than the Chinese Mantis. They were about the size of 2 week old, or 1/8th” crickets. I sprinkled them into the kinyongia cages and the babies went to town! Success!
Next I placed a Chinese Ooth in each enclosure. Hatching times varies wildly, also between 4-6 weeks... since they were at the bottom, cooler part of the cages.
One morning I found Clarice acting very strange near the bottom of her cage. I was concerned and upon investigation found that the baby mantids hatched and she was in a precarious position trying to snipe them before they even dropped out of the ooth! Delicious!!!
Now i’m hooked. Some chams enjoy them more (or faster) than others... but all seem to snack on the little guys freely. After a few days, they do begin to cannibalize each other. I have occasional soil gnats and super annoying white flies... so the mantids will help with natural pest patrol in the enclosures until they meet their untimely fate.
The Chinese Mantids are a tad bit bigger initially, but seem to grow twice as fast as the Carolinas. I have a few in the enclosures that are about the size of a black soldier fly now. I doubt any will make it to adult size, but if they had - the adult carolina mantids are a good feeder size, whereas adult chinese mantids, especially females, will likely be too large for anything other than (maybe) a Parsons.
My advice is to just throw the ooths in the cage (try to orient them so the babies can dangle down as rhey would hatching from a branch). They dont need any special care or feeding from that point.
.
