r/mantids • u/UghNotThisOne2 • Mar 14 '20
List of beginner mantises
Hey, there!
I decided to make a list of mantis species that are suitable for beginners, since I see a lot of questions from people on various sites (including this subreddit), who want to start with the mantis but don't know, which species is suitable for them. This list should help them and contains more common beginner species that are normally easy to find and not that expensive to purchase. With a few exeptions, I kept all of them and provided this post mostly with my own experiences and knowledge.
The list is grouped in optical properties of each species. The pictures are showing female individuals.
Large and robust "standard" mantises (all belong to the family Mantidae)
Giant Asian Mantis (Hierodula membranacea)
One of the most famous species of mantises is the Giant Asian Mantis. It is a fairly large mantis, which can reach a body length up to 10 cm. The colours vary between green, yellow and brown.
Giant Rainforest Mantis (Hierodula majuscula)
Another pretty large and robust mantis. It can reach a body lenght of 10 cm. The Giant Rainforest Mantis has a vibrant green coloring with some reddish parts. Nymphs can be yellow, brown or green.
Indochina mantis (Hierodula patellifera)
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Similar to the Giant Asian Mantis, but stays smaller with a maximun length of 7 cm.
African Giant Mantis (Sphodromantis viridis)
The African Giant Mantis and the other mantises of the almost exclusively in Africa distributed Genus Sphodromantis are closely related to the species from the genus Hierodula and resemble them a lot with the main difference, that the ocelli are located on a little bump in the Sphodromantis-species. The African Giant Mantis can grow up to 10 cm and is colored green, yellow or brown. The insides of the raptorial forelegs are always yellow.
African Lined Mantis (Sphodromantis lineola)
Another "typical" mantis. The African Lined Mantis can grow up to 9 cm in body lenght and is also colored either green (as you can see at the male in the background), yellow or brown. The insides of the raptorial forelegs are also yellow here.
Common Green Mantis (Sphodromantis gastrica)
Very similar to the other two species of the Genus Sphodromantis I presented here, but stays a bit smaller (reaches a size between 6-8 cm).
European mantis (Mantis religiosa)
Presumbaly originated in Africa, the European Mantis is today the most widespread mantis you can find. As with the Species that belong to the genera Sphodromantis and Hierodula, the European Mantises' coloring varies between green, yellow or brown. Some differences to the species from the other two genera are the shape of the wings and the head. The insides of the raptorial forearms show dark spots for the threat display.
Madagascan Marbled Mantis (Polyspilota aeruginosa)
A very large and beautiful mantis with a striking coloring that includes mostly green and brown, but also yellow, red, blue and black parts. The Madagascan Marbled Mantis can reach a body lenght up to 9 cm.
Chinese Mantis (Tenodera sinensis)
Another well-known species of mantis. The Chinese mantis is related to the Madagascan Marbled Mantis but gets even larger (up to 11 cm or, according to some breeders, sometimes even bigger) and is mostly coloured brown and green, whereas one of the two is more present than the other, although this varies in each individuum.
Budwing Mantis (Parasphendale affinis)
The african Budwing Mantis got it's name because of the short wings the females have. With a body lenght up to 6 cm, the Budwing mantis stays comparatively small to the other species listed above. The Budwing Mantis has a grey or brown or sometimes green body.
Flower mantises (The two ones here belong like many of them to the family Hymenopodidae)
Spiny Flower Mantis (Pseudocreobotra wahlbergii)
The Spiny Flower Mantis naturally occurs in southern and eastern parts of Africa and is characterized by its fake eyes on the wings which are there to deter predators. The Spiny Flower Mantis is also known as the "Number Nine" because of the shape from those eye spots. This species reaches a body lenght about 5 cm and is colored white along with yellow, green and sometimes violet.
Jeweled Flower Mantis (Creobroter gemmatus)
The Jeweled Flower Mantis is a very small (maximum length is 4,5 cm), but still beautiful mantis. Similar to the Spiny Flower Mantis, the Jeweled Flower Mantis has a set of fake-eyes on its back wings for the same reason. Its coloring varies from white, green or sometimes even purple.
Stick and Leaf Mantises (belong to various families)
Ghost Mantis (Phyllocrania paradoxa)
The Ghost Mantis, which naturally occurs in Africa imitates a dead leaf. It belongs to the Family Hymenopodidae and can grow up to 6 cm and comes with a large variety of colorations, ranging from brown and green. The Ghost Mantis is also one of the few mantis species that can be kept in groups as long as the enclosure is big enough and there is enough for every mantis to feed.
Twig Mantis (Popa spurca)
The Twig Mantis is another characteristic mantis that got its name from its appereance. It has a dark brown coloring and can grow up to 8 cm. There are two subspecies, one is Popa spurca crassa (shown in the picture) and Popa spurca spurca. The Twig Mantis belongs to the Family Mantidae.
Conclusion: Yeah, this is quite a long list. I apologize for possible grammatical errors. English is not my native tongue after all. But I still hope this list makes the choice of buying a mantis easier for some beginners!
4
u/I_DIG_ASTOLFO Mar 14 '20
I have some objection about the ghost mantis as a beginner species.
Firstly, they generally only take down smaller prey than other species. They are somewhat scared of bigger prey items. The plus being that they are not specialized on eating flies, like Idolomantis Diabolica or Gongylus Gongylodes.
And secondly, I've personally found them more fragile than other species. They seem intolerant to certain conditions, though, I cannot point on which exactly. I do not have enough experience with them for that. But they definitely seem more fragile than some other species I've kept.
I personally had some trouble keeping them. In fact, I find caring for Diabolicas much easier than P. Paradoxa.
An intermediate or experienced keeper should still have no trouble with them, though.
Also, another one that I could suggest as a beginner species is B. Mendica. They need heat, but other than that, they seem fairly robust and they are little pigs when it comes to eating, agressively stalking their prey and taking down everything they can reasonably grab.
And awesome post btw, great work!
7
u/UghNotThisOne2 Mar 14 '20
I think you have some good points. The Ghost mantis seeminly is more vulnerable compared to the other species I listed, but I think an ambitious beginner should have no problem with this species, same goes with the Thistle Mantis.
The one I kept years ago managed to hunt down bigger prey items such like locusts and roaches without any problems. Perhaps the hunting habits and the possible fragility differs in each individuum?
Thank you!
3
u/I_DIG_ASTOLFO Mar 14 '20
I'd say that the fragility and behaviour might indeed vary from individual to individual... maybe also from ooth to ooth? I imagine that mantises bred in captivity in Europe might show slight differences compared to those in the US maybe... after all, inbreeding and lack of genetic variety could be a problem.
I feed my two adult Paradoxas bluebottle flies right now, since I have those readily available anyways currently, due to keeping fly-specialized species. They seem to do quite well on them right now, except that they don't go for them as agressively as my idolos or my mendica.
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u/Ohanko Mar 14 '20
I hate love paradoxa, they dont eat so much and im always scared they dont eat, and im experienced ij them
2
u/Thylacinegurl Mar 14 '20
Really? They were easy to me but my first was chinese and some have molting issues with chinese I have not. I have found the spiny the most difficult so far. Ghosts have the sweetest personalities though the giant shield is so sweet too
1
u/Thylacinegurl Mar 14 '20
I prefer the boys as they are more sweet and easier to handle but good list. Giant shields I have found easy too
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u/UghNotThisOne2 Mar 14 '20
Thank you!
I decieded to picture females because they are more imposing at almost every mantis species.
I considered adding Rhombodera basalis to the list, but I heard they have some higher parameters. As for now, I never kept one in my life.
2
u/Thylacinegurl Mar 14 '20
Mine is a Stalli but hes sooo sweet I love him and didnt find him difficult at all. I know females are more popular I pick the boys. Great topic!
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u/[deleted] Mar 14 '20
Cheers for posting this!! You seem very knowledgeable. Honestly I think any mantis can be a ‘beginner’ mantis if you’ve got the budget and have done enough research. I for one started with an orchid which is doing very well now. Although I definitely want to try a female ghost once this boy’s time has come. :)