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I ordered 2 egg cases Tenodera sinensis or Chinese mantises. The ebay auction says that will hatch 100-400 mantises. I plan on releasing most of them (it is a perfectly legal species to release here and there is already an established population. They are considered a good alternative to insecticides as a means of pest control ) I want to keep maybe half a dozen of the strongest looking specimens. I plan on using deli containers to house each individually. I can get flightless fruit flies at the local pet shop. I would love any advice from other who have raised mantis as this is my first time!

*Blinks...long stare...* For real, finally another mantis owner in the guild? xd

First thing I'll post is a link to the most active Mantis forum I have happened around. It has wealth of knowledge plus is a great place to look for sellers of various mantis related items, food, and of course mantises. You have to sign up to get full access to the forum but it is free so don't be shy. They have a search feature so you can post in key phrases to look up all sorts of stuff that has been discussed in previous threads. They also have a number of pinned, beginner info type threads. ---> Mantidforum


Chinese mantises are a favorite of mine and they were also my starter species into the mantis world. Deli cups are a popular choice among the hobbyist to mass raise nymphs so no problems there. A lot of people like to hook some screen to the top of the lids though since mantises tend to spend most of their time hanging from there.

Personally I have never used deli cups. I like to raise my nymphs up in the net cages such as the ones you can find at Live Monarch The cubes can comfortably house even an adult Chinese. This is a highly active species so I like to give them as much space as I can.

As for fruit flies, I would go right ahead and start with the largest species you can find which is typically the Hydei. They are a large nymph that grows quickly so within a couple sheddings they will easily be ready for larger prey.

I've always considered this a fairly easy hardy species to raise. They are active, easy to handle, and are very voracious about hunting. Once the nymphs hatch it will take anywhere from about 24-72 hours for their hunting instinct to kick in. This is most likely to give them time to disperse and find their own patch of land so they don't end up cannibalizing right from the start. They will however immediately take water so a good misting is in order once they hatch and before you release the extras. Chinese has always been a species that enjoys its water so I always like to offer some via spray daily.

You can also use this to your advantage when picking out which ones you want to keep. I will often do what I call the water test. Before mass spraying everyone, I will pick out the ones that interest me. I will first carefully check them over to make sure they look properly formed. Then I will offer them a little water paying close attention when they bend to drink. Their abdomen should plump up. If they strain to drink and drink but you don't see any fattening I take that as a bad sign. I also pay close attention for spitting up. Some nymphs will drink then immediately bend back down and spit it up and rub their mouths across the ground. Sometimes it is just their bellies settling and they will drink the drop back down, but I consider it a warning sign they may not have the best digestion track on them.

I always suggest starting off with double the amount you hope to have at the end.

I can't wait till I get a post telling me your new nymphs have hatched. My mantis Merlin, is currently sitting right next to my computer screen reading all this. She is also very eager. ^.~

Thanks, i've signed up on mantidforus. I'm thinking of hatching the cases in a 10 gal and then separating a few out into the cups, do you think that will work, and how long could I keep them that way before I'd have to separate them?

The cases arrived today. As I said, I've never done this, but they look good to my eyes, they aren't crushed or anything. I had some non mantis related issues come up and didn't get the tank completely set up though. I'm working on it now. the good news, I forgot I had a terrarium tank, ( the kind that is higher than wide & opens in front instead of the top) 18x12x12in so I'm going to use that instead. I have a nice piece of cork bark for the back too for the little mantises to climb. I figure, I'll hatch them out in that, after the first few days or so I'll separate the ones I want to keep into deli containers. I realize I'll probably have some that don't make it, but if I get a nice big healthy specimen, I'll transfer that one back to the terrarium to live when it gets big.

So, my question is this: How long do you think I have until the cases hatch???

This is so exciting! Keep us updated!

I don't think they do to good in the fridge. You can always mix up a second culture a few weeks in and that will keep the colony going for you.

Mixing up cultures is super easy and you can pick up anything you would need right in your local grocery store. If you got one of those tiny tubes from Petco those things don't last long at all.

Here is a link to a thread in the Mantid Forum on it. You will need to sign in to see it. There is also a link to other threads as people discus preferences in what they like in their mixture. --->Knowledge of the Claw