| The praying mantis is a very interesting looking | | | | get too low.In the wild, the praying mantis eats |
| creature. Usually, you can't even see them in the wild | | | | mainly insects. When you keep these animals in your |
| because they blend in so much with plants. The | | | | home, you need to feed them every two to three |
| African Mantis is becoming very popular as a pet and | | | | days. You should feed an adult mantis crickets and |
| is relatively easy to keep.A praying mantis can grow | | | | grasshoppers. A younger mantis can be fed smaller |
| to be up to ten centimeters long. They come in | | | | insects like pinhead crickets or drosophilae. If you |
| many different color variations that range from bright | | | | have more than one mantis housed together, be |
| green to dark brown. Occasionally, they also are a | | | | sure to keep them well fed or they will eat each |
| cream color. The adults have full wings and can see | | | | other.If you plan on breeding the praying mantis, the |
| extraordinarily well.If you are going to keep these | | | | first thing you need to know is how to tell males and |
| creatures, you must be very careful to keep them in | | | | females apart. The easiest way to tell is to count the |
| the correct temperature and humidity. They need to | | | | abdominal segments. Males have eight and females |
| be kept in an aquarium that is pretty tall because | | | | have six. Once you get a pair, feed them very well |
| they need height for molting. Make sure the tank is | | | | for two weeks before breeding them. If you don't |
| sealed so that they cannot get out, but use a | | | | feed them enough, one will probably eat the other |
| well-ventilated lid so oxygen can get in. Many people | | | | instead of mating. The only thing recommended for a |
| end up sealing the tank so well than oxygen cannot | | | | breeding tank is a piece of diagonal corkboard. Put |
| get in and the creatures die.At the bottom of the | | | | the breeding pair together once they have been fed |
| tank you will need to have some kind of substrate | | | | for the two weeks. Watch them very closely and |
| as well as twigs and branches. Make the substrate | | | | make sure the female is not aggressive towards the |
| ten millimeters thick. You don't need to make the | | | | male. If she is, take out the male immediately. If they |
| aquarium that humid because the praying mantis gets | | | | mate, the female will lay several hundred eggs. Be |
| the moisture it needs from what it eats. It is | | | | careful, because right after they mate the female will |
| recommended that you lightly mist them though. A | | | | try to eat the male.It doesn't take that much work |
| younger mantis needs more humidity than an adult. If | | | | to keep your praying mantis healthy. Getting their |
| you see dew on the side of the tank, then that | | | | environment right is the hardest thing to do. Once |
| means that the there is too much humidity in there. | | | | you do that, you can just enjoy watching these |
| Don't let the humidity get too high or your praying | | | | fascinating creatures. |
| mantis can die. Also make sure the humidity doesn't | | | | |