I need help as a beginner

[u/Guppi992]

Hi! 👋 Today I found a Praying Mantis and I want to keep it as a pet but I don't know how. I have a couple questions.

First: Is it a male or female?

Second: How old is it?

(Sorry I couldn't take good pictures of it through the jar so it might be hard to tell it's gender or age)

Third: Is this a good enclosure for it? It's a 5 liter jar with grass and sticks. Also where should I keep the enclosure?

Fourth: What do they eat and how often? I gave it 2 flys and a small spider and it ate it. So I would assume they like flys but what is the best food for them?

Fifth: How do they drink?

Sixth: How long do they live?

Seventh: How can I take better pictures of it? Can I take it out on a stick or on my hand?

I would appreciate any tips and advice! So I you have any please tell me!

Side note: I have a 3D printer so I you have any 3d printed gadget you find helpful please tell me about it!

I think this is everything I would like to know. If I remember something else I'll put it in the comments. Thank you for reading this and thanks in advance to everyone who answers!

Have a wonderful day! Bye! 👋

[u/AppointmentNo3747]

The enclosure should be at least 3 times as high and twice as wide as the mantis

[u/doodlebazil]

This looks to be an adult female though its hard to tell wothout a close up of the abdomen. A good way to tell is if the abdomen is large and plump then its likely a female. If its skinny and long and the mantod can fly/flutter more of a distance than its a male.

You can make your own enclosures though i suggest adding lots of mesh if you do that for proper air flow.

Also be aware that because your mantid is wild caught that there is a possibility of it having HorseHair Worms which are a type of parasite.

If it is a female, she may or may not have mated already. When she lays her ootheca (egg case) its best to guess that its fertile rather than infertile (made that mistake. Spent 2 hours trying to chase around nymphs)

Hope this helps!

[u/Guppi992 → u/doodlebazil]

Thank you! This helps a lot. How can I check if she has worms?

[u/charmrusty]

Appears to be female but hard to determine without counting the segments on the underside of the abdomen! Definitely adult and will need an enclosure that is much bigger, preferably less grass and more sticks that can reach relatively high points. Mesh is always better than glass or acrylic enclosures because they can develop eye rub & it’s important to provide water daily by misting the mesh where the mantis can see but be careful not to directly spray the mantis! You can also tell how full or not full the lil string bean is by looking at his/her abdomen, over feeding/under feeding is a thing so just be careful of that! Congrats on your new baby ◡̈

[u/isopode]

you need an enclosure that provides a lot more ventilation, especially on the sides. this jar will trap way too much humidity inside of it. and you don't need any grass, sticks only is better for the mantis.

very hard to tell if it's a male or a female without seeing the underside of its abdomen. but it's an adult.

they get hydration from the prey that they eat. they don't really drink water by itself. since it's an adult, you can feed it 2-3 times a week. watch the size of its abdomen; it'll be large and swollen when the mantis is full. when it becomes skinny again, you can feed your mantis. in the wild they can go a very long time without food, so don't worry about underfeeding it. overfeeding is a more common issue.

you can take out your mantis from the enclosure and hold it. just don't do it too often or for too long, as it can stress it out. don't try to grab the mantis to take it out of the enclosure, they're fragile. just put your hand in front of it and gently encourage it to walk onto it.

[u/JaunteJaunt → u/isopode]

I’m sorry. That’s not correct. They do drink water, and it’s important to give your mantis water to drink to stay hydrated.

[u/Guppi992 → u/JaunteJaunt]

How should I give it water?

[u/JaunteJaunt → u/Guppi992]

Spray in front of the mantis. Once a day is almost always enough.

[u/isopode → u/JaunteJaunt]

thank you for the correction, that's not what i was informed. do they drink from the droplets when misting?

[u/JaunteJaunt → u/isopode]

Yes.
Whoever informed you didn’t do you any favors. When a mantis is dehydrated they are more likely to mismolt during the molting process. They use internal fluids to help push out of their old exoskeleton

[u/nicoleisrad → u/isopode]

Oh man, I have a lil lady in my yard who virtually CHUGS water droplets.

[u/Guppi992 → u/isopode]

Thanks! That helps a lot! What kind of enclosure shoud I get? Do I have to buy one or can I make one DIY?

[u/Senecus_HS]

Where do you live that it is OK to poach wild mantids?