Breeding Praying Mantises
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 4 янв 2020
- Breeding mantises is a tricky game, especially if you only have one male mantis. Sometimes you get lucky and they mate right away and sometimes you have to work at it a bit. Over many years of raising praying mantises and learning how to breed mantises you sort of develop a sense of intuition about what they are thinking and what they need to breed successfully.
This video will show you how to introduce the male Hierodula membranacea Giant Asian mantis while the female is actively feeding. I describe my methodology in a play by play fashion as the situation develops, while making small corrections along the way to maximize the chances for success. Sometimes it goes much more smoothly than this. Sometimes the female eats the male mantid. As noted in the video, we must as keepers watch the interaction between female mantids and male very carefully and be always prepared to intervene, or redirect the breeding mantis pair. It is part science, part art, part chance and part experience. Inevitably, it is up to the female mantis!
Subscribe to this Channel: bit.ly/38Tslkg
Online Store: www.shop.bugsincyberspace.com/
Care Books: www.shop.bugsincyberspace.com...
Follow us on these social media platforms:
Instagram: / bugsincyberspace
TikTok: @bugsincyberspace
#petmantis #breedingmantids #mantisbreeding #petmantiscare 
Животные
I learned that if you need to intervene when the situation is going bad you can use a spray bottle at the female. It is a very quick and effective way to save your male. Just make sure you have it aimed at all times so you can react quickly!
great tip! clever!
Fascinating. How patient one must be to able to see the beginning of the process of reproduction on two mantises. Thank you for the video.
It never ceases to be interesting, important and tense!
about as patient as every single human trying to procreate but i get your cute comment.
Some mating attempts I've done before have taken up to 2 hours to get it started
Romantic music also helps
Worth every minute, when it works, eh? 👍
@@bugsincyberspace absolutely! Tedious at times but very rewarding
I’m here because praying mantises eat murder hornets.
And where else would you be? ;)
@@bugsincyberspace I bought Mantis because i keep ants and sometimes ants get way too many and thats a solution. No fruit flies for mine, ants do it too
@@cg56578 wrong, most kinds of ants contains toxins that are poisonous for mantids. I absolutely do not recommend feeding them ants.
@@Coolwhip-ro5mg no problems so far but i understand
36:52 when you get caught sneaking out at night
Wow! Suspenseful! Better than an episode of Good Girls! 🤪 I was so happy to see the male still alive the following morning. Very informative video. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you, Angela. I still have some spinies around! Better than an episode of Good Girls 😂
@@bugsincyberspace I chickened out on the Spiny Flower mantises. I placed an order for 3 BDFBs on Friday to add to my other 3. I love those beetles! I think I'll do a little more research and possibly attempt them this spring.
@@angelajones129 lol, fair enough! The beetles are always a safe and secure bet. Thanks Angela!
@@angelajones129 did you ever get a mantis?
They are amazing little critters
I was literally watching this while trying to position my sphodromantis viridis, and for the first time in my life, i saw the male jump on and connect in seconds.. still going as i write this! Thanks to you and your informative video!!
Mine connected within seconds of introduction! They’re breeding as I speak haha.
Sometimes it works out perfectly like that. Lucky! Congrats!
Bugs In Cyberspace thanks! This is my first time so I really appreciate this video :)
I shall name my giant asian mantis lettuce.
Lettuce all agree that is a very good name.
@@bugsincyberspace Thank you. I am getting my giant Asian mantis hopefully on Thursday this week super excited😁
@@isaacmcdonald9322 Happy keeping and please let me know if you have any questions along the way!
That’s terrifying for the male 😂😂😂 he’s probably praying she doesn’t drop that roach
Thank you for sharing Pete. Very useful indeed. Happy New Year.
Thank you very much for commenting and Happy New Year to you and all the bugs!
Great video. Thank you Mother Nature for creating mantis.
Thanks Wally! Mantises really are a source of inspiration for us humans, and for longer than we can remember.
Awesome video. Thank you!
This is an awesome video. It was so informative and had lots of good tips.
Thank you very much for your comments, Jennifer!
This is wicked. Thanks for sharing! When you're choosing mates, what steps do you have to take to protect genetic diversity? I imagine with so many mantids around, it might be hard to keep track of "bloodlines".
Awesome video and awesome photography! 👍
Thank you for your in-depth teaching! I am learning so much!! I appreciate you!
Thank you very much, Marsha!
It is always interesting to see how other keepers do things. Personally, I like to for the opposite method for introductions. I will get my male situated somewhere and then introduce the female. I find getting the girl to walk in front of the boy is the fastest/surest way to instantly get him tracking her. Once I know he has spotted her, I will then feed her.
In nature the females release pheromones and the males show up, but certainly all cards are on the table in captivity and males and females will often do what nature directs them to do when they are near to each other. Your method is perhaps the hobby equivalent of the Sadie Hawkins dance. ;) Even when a male doesn't accept the invite, they are still generally flattered at the opportunity.
Oh my god thank you so much! This was really helpful, thank you!!!
I'm very grateful for the request! Thanks for encouraging me to put these two together when I did. This wouldn't have happened without you!
I remember when I was younger I had two of them. I made sure they were both fed before they met. Worked perfectly.
Breeding Mantis is as important as Breeding bees. More people should look into this. I have a nest in my backyard they have been invaluable to me and they are friendly to humans. If you want to keep your property free of harmful insects this is the ticket. I need to more about proliferation.
Great video-I learned a lot!
Amazing!! Fantastic video and so happy to see the male came out ok!! Lol. I didnt know it was a myth that the female ALWAYS eats the male so I was a little worried for the guy!! 💗
Thank you for watching and commenting, Sherry!
Very interesting!
I might be getting a female mantis! Can't wait to try and breed them with my male mantid
Just got both of mine to mate at this very moment. Thanks
Congrats!!
Wish me luck... just introduced our male to one of our 3 females today. I hope it goes okay, he is the only male we have. 😬. Shouldn’t be to tough to find another male at the nature park but I’m still nervous 😂
It's always an anxious moment, for sure. Best of luck to you and the mantises!
Bugs In Cyberspace They are separated in the same enclosure. She is displaying her wings. Is that a good or bad sign?
Bugs In Cyberspace Well... bad luck for the male. At least we know there will be fertilized ootheca.
This is amazing thanks for the video
Thank you for that, Steve!
This was really cool to see.
Thank you, Wayne!
Thanks for posting! Fascinating! Could you please make an itemized list of everything I need to breed mantises and include links? Thank you!
Thanks that was great. I need to introduce my make and female for the first time and I had no idea where to start!
Thanks Amy! Good luck and let me know if you have any questions!
@@bugsincyberspace I appreciate that! Thanks again
thanks so much for the video it was very helpful to me. so far i have had success with my s.lineola , with one female anyway, actually the female is a mantis i got from you. thanks again!!!
Awesome, Michael and I know it is encouraging to others to read about your feedback and success. Thank you!
Fantastic video.
Thanks Liz!
Fascinating. I couldn't stop watching. Your outro sounded a little familiar.
LOL, I figured it might take you years to watch one of my videos the WHOLE way through, and notice! 😂
Peter, very thoughtful and thorough video! The hobby is very lucky to have you as a resource for knowledge and experience combined! On a side note, I was watching OPB and some research was being done of millipedes and daddy longlegs whilst spelunking. Just curious, are you a spelunker?🤔 And, have you ever done so for bugs?
Just saw this message for the first time, sorry. I have gone into caves a few times. No matter where I go, I'm looking for them.
@@bugsincyberspace No worries! Now you know where the "cave" theme began! Lol😁
wow thanks for the tips, I had 2 of them mount but I’m still unsure if it was successful.
I catch H . Venosa as juveniles and rear them til adulthood. I have successfully mated H . Venosa pairs and the males survive more often than not . I just make sure the female is extremely well fed.
@24:40 "Bite the roach I'm going in dry."
In observational studies, my understanding is that breeding related cannibalism occurs about 30% of the time.
It would be interesting to see the factors laid out with that study or studies, including whether it was in the wild or in a cage, whether they induced the meeting of the two, species observed, tank size, other environmental aspects, hiding options, feeding frequency up to the point of introduction, methodology for introduction, whether the male is left in afterwards, general definition of "breeding related," etc etc. It seems to me that at best the 30% outcome is a function of a controlled experiment if it is in a cage. Such controls produce an outcome. If the controls are modified, so is the outcome. Factors are at play in the wild too which increase or diminish the incidence of cannibalism. Obviously, 30% is not an acceptable outcome for keepers with a single male and a single female who will intervene before cannibalism is able to occur and so the studies, while very interesting as all science is, aren't necessarily applicable to anything but the studies themselves (which I assume means throwing a male in with a female they "think" isn't hungry, lol).
I really think its just a matter of making sure the female is properly fed. As if she's full why would she need to eat the male, as isnt it about needing/ensuring she has enough nutrients to develop the eggs? And having the male right there ready to give a boost of nutrient for her means whatever energy stores she had at the time aren't being used up from the eggs and also then searching and hunting for food.
Its the smartest thing for her to do eating the male.
So if she already has the nutrient stores she shouldnt need to eat him.
This seems to be the case with mine. And as long as I offer more frequent feeding after they mate so far it looks to be going good. They mated again 3 evenings later, and now as I type this 2 1/2 days further again they're mating for the third time... Her belly is huge...
Ive only had them just over a week, they're wild and they live uncaged on some indoor plants on my coffee table. The door to outside is only a few meters away and been left open the whole time as it just my backyard and I leave it open for my turtles to come and go. They sleep in my bed of a night and take themselves out to their pond and back in whenever they please 😁
I really thought the male was in trouble when she turned and stared at him. I got nervous for him. Great video. That's about the only videos I watch without skipping forward. I was wondering if the males ever go for the food instead of the fm but you answered that already. It does seem like this kind of thing Is situational. No two alike I'm sure.
That's right, Beth. 100% situational and if the female grabs the male you have to be more than ready to carefully separate the two before significant damage occurs. Last year I had a female dead leaf mantis that ate 4 or 5 males. She eventually passed away having never produced offspring and despite my careful efforts to the contrary.
@@bugsincyberspace oh wow that fast! That's unreal the damage those guys can do. I noticed in your video they look like they almost have a kind fingers around the mouth to help them eat. I never realized that. Very cool
@@beththornstrom2034 Yep, it's really amazing how all these tiny parts perform such precise little tasks. Everything looks so much different when you zoom in close. I sometimes feel like I'm seeing them for the first time!
Top tier wingman
Lol 👍
Thank you! I thought that mantis males could only breed 1x before passing away. I am not sure if that belief was based on the death by female or if an old wives tale that would predict the end of the life cycle or maybe just a skewed version of the combination. Does the female die after the egg sac is laid or does she have time enough to repeat the process? About the feeding- in another video I understood you to say a mantis if allowed to free feed will make itself sick. Does it also do this in the wild? What is the feeding schedule/amounts for a newly fertilized mantis? In respect to ghost mantis in a communal setting- have you encountered gravid females or egg cases surprising you? Oh, the questions this stag reel will cause!
Hi Dee! Thank you for these questions and I'll take the opportunity here to correct some of the misinformation we see online.
*both males and females and mate repeatedly
*females can and usually do produce multiple egg cases (their lifespan is not directly tied to egg production)
*if a mantis eats a lot and then is kept cold it may become sick (when it can't digest its food)
*a mantis will NOT eat itself to death (but see note above)
*care sheet on my website discusses freeding frequency (a plump abdomen is the goal). Feed a gravid female as much as she will eat. Keep her warm.
*Both unfertilized and fertilized female ghost mantises will deposit many, many egg cases!
@@bugsincyberspace I remember reading it a very long time ago. Apparently I have forgotten a good bit. Heading back to your website to read before work.
@@deemueller6470 Well, I popped today's video on there. It is the first time I've updated that page of the website in probably a decade. ;) Thanks Dee, and have a good evening!
My Carolina mated and ate the male. Then she laid 7 egg cases over maybe 4 months. The last ones may have been infertile. Some say one mating is enough for life, others say you may need to re-mate a female after 4 cases.
We bred this species successfully.... or so we thought but after the end of the night together.... the female was laying on the bottom on her back seemingly dying. No attack seemed to take place. We are very confused bc they locked and were mating at the top when we went to bed. Any ideas?
Good video, I'm surprised at how easy that was. I've been trying to breed my chinese mantids for a while now with no luck and it looks like my last male is at the end of his life span. I tried maybe 20 times with 3 different males but seemed the males could never really do it. They would always get on the females back in position but never try to curl there abdomens eventually they'd lose interest and and run away. Only one time did a male actually try and curl his abdomen around but he couldn't find the right spot or the female didn't let him he ended up flying away after trying for about 5 minutes.
I'm raising Chinese Mantises and approaching mating time. When you need yours; did the male and female come from the same ootheca?
@@PKMNmasterJuice yes, though i guess inbreeding is not an issue with most insects or so I've read. Seems most people online that breed don't worry about it.
@@Lono69 thanks for the response. Same, I didn't think it would be that big on an issue. I will try and see what results I get.
my male was connected for about half an hour then jumped off. do you think my female is fertile now or should I keep mating them. she seems to still be calling. my method for breeding was the same but I had a piece of paper blocking her view and it gave my male mantis strong encouragement and he new he was safe!
I think it probably worked but definitely wouldn't hurt to try again.
how long does the breeding last for
I have noticed that feamales get really fat before laying an unfertilized otheca. Would I want to try to mate them once the feamale is fat with an unfertilized ooth? Or am I able to whenever? Also I’ve heard that after the final molt you have to wait a while to pair them. Do you happen to know how long to wait for a ghost mantis? And do you need to wait a while for a male too?
The oft-quoted rule of thumb it to wait two weeks before attempting to breed a newly mature female, although some females are still not ready at that point. It's really just a case by case basis and once you introduce a mantis to a mate's cage, you have to watch carefully for signs of interest or disinterest. The number of extra/backup males you have often dictates how much leeway you give to a particular couple that is together.
Also, females will produce multiple egg egg cases (oothecae), and so anytime a male fertilizes here is a good time!
In the case of ghost mantises, and most mantises, the unfertilized oothecae will not hatch (if a male has not bred with the female).
Bugs In Cyberspace ok! Thanks.
This is neat TBH.
Loved you video. Don' know where to get one!
They come and go on my website of the same name as this channel. ;)
Is it true that gravid females will refuse food?
Im planning to breen european mantis, if that helps.
Gravid females need food for sure!
Did eat his head or make the male escape
Just a Quick question. Is its okay to breed mantis from the same egg sack?
It's definitely okay and sometimes we don't have any other options. Over many many generations the relatedness of individuals would make the new population less diverse and more susceptible to disease. There is also some suspicion that related specimens are less interested in breeding with each other, naturally, but I've observed that the mantises, even from the same ootheca, follow their instincts to breed with each other.
😍👍
Thanks!
Hi @bugsincyberspace! I know I’m late for this video, but I find your content extremely helpful as a first time keeper! I have 4 Chinese and one rhombodera megaera & was thinking about mating my Chinese. I just had my first male molt into adulthood today! I found it interesting that you said you bred them In January- do you (& can you) keep mantises throughout the winter if they are kept inside in ideal conditions?? Thank you for the great content and information, as always!!
Some egg cases unfortunately hatch late in summer or fall and then all the insects that are their food in nature start to die as the cold comes on and the mantises end up starving rather than dying from cold exposure. And so bringing them indoors definitely extends their lives in many cases when it starts to get cold. Thanks for your kind words, Alex!
OMG I just realized something,I think i've been mixing you up with Guy tansley from bugs and stuff for years ... daammmn
Sounds like one helluva guy! I guess I didn't notice when you wrote and said Hi Guy, but he probably wondered why you kept saying Hi Peter all these years! 😂😂😂
@@bugsincyberspace Ahahaha yeah ! Now i wonder, wich of you two did the photoshopped Teraphosa blondii picture that went kinda viral ?
DOES ANYTHING DETERMINE WHAT SEXES THE OFSPRING WILL BE? LIKE TEMPERATURE OR ANYTHING? ALSO HOW SOON CAN YOU TELL THE SEXES OF OFFSPING? AND HOW MANY THAT HATCH USUALLY SERVIVE? CAN YOU SHOW HOW TO BREAD OTHER SPECIES? MIGHT BE THE SAME WAY JUST VERY INTERESTED TO SEE/ FIND OUT. ALSO I HEARD MALES MATURE MUCH FASTER, HOW DID YOU COMBAT THIS? DO YOU NORMALLY ORDER THE MALES LATER AFTER THE FEMALE REACHES A CERTAIN AGE?
Hi, i Just got My first couples of mantises do they Both need to be adults before u can start breeding or does the female only need to be adult
Both need to be adults and ideally for at least a couple weeks (fully mature) before they are introduced to one another. The female should also be very well fed first! Thanks TK!
when the giant asian gets its wings, are they done molting? if so, how long should I wait to pair them up for mating?
Yes, with any insect outside of mayflies, wings always means maturity and that they will never molt (or grow) again. Two weeks is the commonly quoted waiting time for a newly matured female but I find that it often takes longer than that for her to become interested in a waiting male. Sometimes we have an older male and want to at least "try" at the 2 week mark because we aren't sure he's going to live 3 weeks!
@@bugsincyberspace thanks for the response. my male matured about 2 weeks ago. all he does is stare at the female, being her enclosure is right next to his. lol
@@markvankoughnet1236 It can be a game of introducing them to each other and then interceding repeatedly, sometimes, when one or the other individual isn't showing the kind of interest we are hoping to see. When you only have one member of a particular sex it's always a game of patience and persistence.
@@bugsincyberspace after the the 3rd time I presented the male to the female, they finally mated!! that was last Saturday night. now, late Thursday night, I let them both out of their enclosures, just opened them up, put a cup with a stick on top the enclosure. she came out,went up to the stick, he followed shortly after, and they are mating again! amazing!
@@markvankoughnet1236 Hey, I'm really happy to hear that. Congrats and thanks for reporting back!
Hi do you have an adult male spiny flower mantis bc I have a adult female that I want to breed
Sorry, not at this time. I rarely have adult mantises available because they take so long to grow up.
Bugs In Cyberspace oh thx
After mating have you ever seen a little white looking ball fall from the females abdomen? Not from where she poops but from where she connects with the male. I always thought it was a dry ball of sperm or something but I can't seem to find any info on what it is? Also how shortly after mating can the male mate again?
These sperm packets are fairly common among certain groups of insects though rarely seen. They are called spermatophores.
@@bugsincyberspace Is fertilization still successful if it falls out of the abdomen?
@@bparks2193 I would err on the side of caution and treat every egg case produced by the female as fertile. If you have the male and no more females, it never hurts to reintroduce him to the female after she produces each ooth.
@@bugsincyberspace ok thanks
I tried to mate my 2 Chinese mantises today. The male mounted the female and the male tried to connect their abdomen to the female's but had no success. Then after about 3 or 4 hours the male gave up and dismounted her. I am looking to try again tomorrow. Is there any suggestions that may help with the mating process for the Chinese mantis?
That's about as close as close gets and it sounds like the female didn't mind him, but just wasn't in the mood. And so I am left wondering if she is just to recently matured. They generally need at least two weeks before the newly adult females are interested in breeding and sometimes longer. They also need to be very well fed, which doesn't sound like the problem here. And so, just try again in a few days and good luck!
@@bugsincyberspace She is actually more matured than the male mantis. She had her final molt approximately 2 weeks before the male did. And the male is coming up at the end of the 3rd week from his final molt. I tried again today and they got much closer to making a connection with the male actively trying to make a connection. The female was just there letting him do his thing but they couldn't connect. After 3 hours again the male gave up and I separated them. I will keep trying if you say it is a positive sign that they don't mind eachother. She is always eating well so I'm not concerned about her eating him.
@@gregasci2802 Yeah, sometimes the females take longer to show interest. Make sure her abdomen looks almost ridiculously plump and that she is hydrated.
@@bugsincyberspace Females take longer to show interest?! Why does that sound too familiar? Hahaha my poor male is trying his hardest to impress her. I will do everything you say. She is very plump though and is pampered with food and water, spoiled girl.
I hope you can still respond to this question, do male mantises really mature and expire faster than the females from the same batch?
I live in the Philippines and there's only 1 supplier of orchid mantises here I want to try to breed them but there's only 1 batch available at a time
Yes, males do mature more quickly and live shorter adult lives too. So what you need to do if you want to breed ones from the same batch is feed the females more and keep them warmer, while keeping the males a bit cooler like room temperature and feeding them at more normal rates.
Oh thank you so much! Atleast now I know its possible, dont really wanna spend $60 dollars for a l3 pair of theyre not breedable, atleast now I know thatvyou can. Thank you!
@@XavMak Well, by L3 the males are putting on some size and so you really have to monitor the pair carefully. It's hard when you only have two mantises to start with because everything has to go perfectly.
Yes I understand that part, really risky investment but will sure be a good one. I just wanted to know if it was possible. Additional question, is it true that males only go though 6 molts or do they just molt faster?
@@XavMak They molt fewer times. I honestly keep way too many things to count stuff like that but I know the info is out there somewhere on Google if you dig for it. ;) 5 or 6 molts sounds about right.
I wonder if it wouldn’t be a bad idea to use rubber bands for braces (little ones) to keep the females’ arms closed. Like grocery store lobster
I've found that a little vigilance makes all the difference!
is that video pad i use it to
100%! How did you recognize it?
How old should I have my mantis be before they breed? How long will it take for the female to lay an egg? How many times can I breed the same mantises? And what do I do when the female lays her eggs? If you can respond that would be awesome thank you!
1. it varies but a minimum of two weeks before you even try for any species is recommended. 2. it varies on the basis of how much food she has to eat and how old she is. 3. If a female has been with a male she can lay numerous fertile egg cases, but it is often helpful to present the male to her again after an egg case or two. 3. Keep them warm for most species, around 80 degrees and mist them every day or two. Great questions, LR!
Thank you so much!
Does having them hang upside down help the mating process at all?
That’s a great question, Joe! Much of what I do is based on observation of pet bugs over the course of decades. I don’t always do a great job of articulating why I do particular things through a quickly developing situation like this. Gravity does play a role and likely so does my own intuition about how it affects the mantises and their positioning. There must be room for the male to maneuver himself into place and sometimes the cage and gravity can help or hinder his efforts. Sometimes too, movement will distract a questionably receptive female. If you try to explain how to ride a bicycle to somebody who has never done it before, one of the first things you realize is that you’re not very good at explaining it. 😉
@@bugsincyberspace Thanks! That makes sense. The other day I tried breeding my spiny flowers for the first time and when the male mounted the female barrel rolled off of the stick she was perched on (upright) to try and wreck him. Part of me feels like if they were both hanging upside down she'd have a harder time of rolling like that to get to him.
(I was able to get him out of there without either of them being hurt thankfully)
@@thecreamman In my experience the females of that species aren't receptive as soon as other species. How long has she been an adult? A couple years ago I had a dead leaf mantis eat five males over the course of a month or two, I think it was. She never let any of them fertilize her. Fortunately, I had more males than females and so I was leaving the males in with her thinking she'd eventually accept one. Nope!
@@bugsincyberspace honestly she must be over a month old at this point which is why I'm getting worried she might just make an unfertilized Ootheca. Unfortunately I only have one male so the stakes are high! Gonna try this afternoon again!
Thats the first time I see an 10min long intro
lol, that was the edited version!
Do yoh sell them or know where to buy them
I do on my website of the same name, and currently have the species in the video available. Thanks TT!
Can you breed sibling mantids?
Yes, and more often than not for most keepers there isn't any other choice. It usually doesn't affect the future stability of the population, though failure is now and then attributed to it for lack of a better explanation.
@@bugsincyberspace tysm for the info!
@@ZEDDATOR Happy to help!
Noticed the male is missing a foot is this normal ?
The more legs you have, the more likely you are to lose one, but the less it matters, and the less often it is noticed. What is the definition of normal? ;)
@@bugsincyberspace Your channel is also very informative by the way hope you keep grinding man ❤️
@@bugsincyberspace true, nothing is truly normal. To my understanding, it’s rather common in the wild, but it’s my first time owning a Double Shield mantis, and he’s a male. I've had him for about a year and a half. I spray his enclosure, and he’s fed well. Just over time, I guess he’s just falling apart. It doesn’t hinder his ability to climb; in fact, amputating his own leg and foot has probably served him well, like getting rid of dead weight. He’s already lost a leg, and some months later, now a footsie. I recently got another enclosure and a giant Asian mantis, so that’s why I’m curious, as I’m hoping this won’t happen again.
Bug porn will they both die after this
The female will continue to deposit egg cases and the male in this case was removed from her cage when they were done.
@@bugsincyberspace how many oothicas and how often would you expect a giant asian mantis to lay.