How to Care for Mantis Nymphs

Mantis keepers have several reasons to breed their pets. First and foremost, it allows breeders to propagate their pets. Second, it allows breeders to see new behaviors in the adult mantises. Lastly, it allows a breeder to observe the lifecycle of their mantis pets.

Things You'll Need

  • Net cage
  • Wingless fruit flies
  • Curly-winged flies
  • Small brown crickets
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Instructions

    • 1

      Place mantis egg case, called an ootheca, into a net cage. Use care to place the opening away from the sides of the cage. Hatching will take three to six months depending on the species.

    • 2

      Once the nymphs (baby mantises) have hatched, be certain and provide small wingless fruit flies to the nymphs. Nymphs will resort to cannibalism if they are crowded or underfed.

    • 3

      Start to feed curly winged flies around day 18 or whenever the fry attain a size of 1.25 cm.

    • 4

      Transition to small crickets and wider varieties of food around day 50, or when the nymphs reach a size of 2.5 cm.

    • 5

      Separate the nymphs around day 50 because they will become more cannibalistic at this stage. The earlier the nymphs are separated from each other, fewer causalities will result.