Reptile Forum, Reptile Classifieds - CaptiveBred

sam · Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2007 8:00 pm Post subject: My hunt...

Unfortunately last week I lost one of my mantids-the thick bodied "built like a tank" Sphodromantis lineola. He escaped one night from my livefood cabinet where i was using him as a biological fly controller... and was never seen again....

Until now!

The big game hunter in me noticed some small round droppings attached to my wall... they could only be mantis. Shouldering my 1 pt calibre plastic cup, I proceded to follow his spoor up the wall from where he had defaeceated to the beasts lair. Pulling back the picture from the wall, i was startled as I saw what seemed to be his corpse hanging from the back of a 1790 sketch of equine anatomy. As I slowly went to retrieve it I was pounced upon by a daemon of a beast-as big as my thumb and spikier than a hedgehog with a bad hair day. What i thought wa a corpse was merely a shedding... and now without it he was twice the size.

I rapidly unshouldered my weapon, and rammed it home over him...trapped! He soon had me scared, so I threw in an offering to try and appease this mighty beast...a size three cricket. To my disbelief this was grabbed single handedly by the monster and devoured...red blood and gore dripping down its razor sharp chilicera...

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Bohan · Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2007 9:07 pm Post subject:

Chelicera, surely you mean mandibles Laughing

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http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Bird-fly/

2.0.0 Varanus glauerti.
1.1.0 Varanus a brachyurus.
1.1.0 Chlamydosaurus kingii.
1.3.4 Lacerta vivipera.

sam · Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2007 9:33 pm Post subject:

yet again birdfly you correct me Wink

So which re chelicera and which are mandibles?!
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Bohan · Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2007 9:38 pm Post subject:

Hi Sam, insects typically have mandibles and arachnids chelicera, theres a lot more to it than that but in a knut shell!! do you still have the Giant chinese mantids? Very Happy

_________________
http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Bird-fly/

2.0.0 Varanus glauerti.
1.1.0 Varanus a brachyurus.
1.1.0 Chlamydosaurus kingii.
1.3.4 Lacerta vivipera.

sam · Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2007 10:00 pm Post subject:

fraid not-they died off Crying or Very sad

I have an H. mem, this guy and two which were supposed to be sphods but look a bit green-do they come in green? hehe
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Bohan · Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 12:08 pm Post subject:

Hi Sam, yes Smile

Sphodromantis species do come in green, straw and brown possibly more colours:D

ps, edit, whatever i will try to get some photos of my Tenodera a sinensis up for you later, sorry to hear yours didnt make it Sad

_________________
http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Bird-fly/

2.0.0 Varanus glauerti.
1.1.0 Varanus a brachyurus.
1.1.0 Chlamydosaurus kingii.
1.3.4 Lacerta vivipera.

Bohan · Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 2:26 pm Post subject:

Have a look at the difference in colour from some of them:

I think they are pre sub to sub adult? Smile

_________________
http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Bird-fly/

2.0.0 Varanus glauerti.
1.1.0 Varanus a brachyurus.
1.1.0 Chlamydosaurus kingii.
1.3.4 Lacerta vivipera.

serpent · Key Member Joined: 12 Jul 2004 Posts: 426 Location: Kent

Just wondering what sort of crickets you feed you mantids to have

Bohan · Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2007 3:30 am Post subject:

Depends on what they've been eating i suppose?
I have found that when ruptured crickets can "bleed" clear and reddish liquids.
These animals are insects, some beetles utilize the blood of there victims and dont even make there own! tricky? Smile

_________________
http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Bird-fly/

2.0.0 Varanus glauerti.
1.1.0 Varanus a brachyurus.
1.1.0 Chlamydosaurus kingii.
1.3.4 Lacerta vivipera.

Bohan · Posted: Mon Aug 27, 2007 3:50 am Post subject:

In response to the question about "which crickets do you feed"
Sorry cant edit for 0.1 hours?
I would prefer to feed Acheta domestica to all my animals if crickets were the only choice, black crickets Gryllus bimaculatus seem to be worst for carrying the "mantis plague" (mostly due to bad nutrition/husbandry and cleanliness)
Which is why i feed most of my mantids on flies(house,green & bluebottles) and cochroaches + wildies..
I keep my G bimaculatus purely for spiders and lizards which are immune or at least unaffected by any bacterium, although i find a lot of lizards will refuse these over any thing else, ?? Very Happy

_________________
http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p17/Bird-fly/

2.0.0 Varanus glauerti.
1.1.0 Varanus a brachyurus.
1.1.0 Chlamydosaurus kingii.
1.3.4 Lacerta vivipera.