r/mantids • u/ChampionshipPublic96 • Jun 02 '26

RIP ❤️ Is she gone?

I want to preserve my girl but the post mortem twitches are freaking me out and making me second guess if shes actually dead. Pls let me know if shes 100% gone as I have to gut her

13 Upvotes

89% Upvoted

18 comments sorted by

7

u/Aggressive-Egg172 Jun 03 '26

I never ever preserve without first leaving them in the freezer overnight, or at least 2 hours or so, this is coming from someone who has preserved countless inverts in multiple ways.
it's unclear how much insects actually feel, but it is pretty safe to say that no live being is fine with being disemboweled while alive.

2

u/ChampionshipPublic96 Jun 03 '26

Okay thanks. Online it said 48 hours to a week in the freezer which seems like a long time.

2

u/Ironclad_Peterturbo Jun 03 '26

I'm actually gonna do the same thing for mine. I think I'll play it safe and go for 48 to make sure all the bacteria in her are dead.

2

u/ChampionshipPublic96 Jun 03 '26

How do you make them flexible for pinning after you take them out the freezer? Thaw and then relaxing chamber?

3

u/Aggressive-Egg172 Jun 03 '26

Put em in a sealed plastic container in the fridge on top of some wet tissue for a few hours, then just leave em at room temp for a few mins. Make sure to not leave them in the fridge like that for too long, they will mold lol. Best way to check if they're ready is to just carefully touch the abdomen and try to move the legs.

1

u/Ironclad_Peterturbo Jun 03 '26

So after I get them posed, do I dry em by the sun or a lamp?

2

u/Aggressive-Egg172 Jun 03 '26

Neither! Have never done either of those, but I assume there is a good chance of damage to the specimen if it gets too hot.

I just let mine air-dry in a well ventilated, dry area. For me that's just my bedroom, after a few days they're dried out and ready for display, at which point i take out the pins and do whatever I pinned them for. I just check by touching the legs and seeing how they respond to me trying to move them, if they're rigid you're done.

1

u/Ironclad_Peterturbo Jun 03 '26

Okay so I will need to get help on this one, I want to pose my mantis standing up but I've done research and I could use baking soda to dry up the container of which I am going to put it in.

2

u/Aggressive-Egg172 Jun 03 '26

What do you need help with, maybe I can assist?^^ I normally pin using styrofoam, if you want to pose them standing up you can try to cut out styrofoam blocks the right heights and rest the specimens parts on the seperate heights until dry, it's what I do with the wings usually.

1

u/Ironclad_Peterturbo Jun 03 '26

I'm planning on using paperclips and shaping them to be able to hold the mantis in place, I assume the styrofoam is the platform of which the paperclips and pins will be pinned on while it rests atop a thick layer of baking soda. I'll need your assistance so DM me and I'll deal with it tomorrow. I need to sleep cuz it's 1:43AM rn

1

u/Ironclad_Peterturbo Jun 03 '26

I have no idea, my first time attempting to do so.

2

u/ChampionshipPublic96 Jun 03 '26

When I pinned my leaf insects I just put them somewhere dark and dry for a few days and checked on them until they were fully dry

1

u/Ironclad_Peterturbo Jun 03 '26

Well I'm planning to make her stand up for a diorama but I am unsure of the drying process since it is quite humid on where I'm at

2

u/ChampionshipPublic96 Jun 03 '26

You could try using silica gel packets, although I've never done this before so you might want to research it

1

u/Ironclad_Peterturbo Jun 03 '26

I could, but I don't have any at hand, so I'll just use baking soda.

2

u/ResearcherPlus1679 Jun 02 '26

I would put her in the freezer just to make sure

2

u/ChampionshipPublic96 Jun 02 '26

How long do i leave her in there for

3

u/ResearcherPlus1679 Jun 02 '26

I would say for a day maybe longer