TIPS & TRICKS: INVERT KEEPER NOTES
- DO NOT FEED YOUR MANTISES RAW/COOKED MEAT, DAIRY, FRUIT, DRIED INSECTS OR INEDIBLE OBJECTS. Mantises are obligate insectivores and will only eat pre-killed or live insects.
- I do not approve of wild caught food as it carries a risk of parasites, pesticides and illness. In my opinion, it is not ever worth the risk.
- I recommend offering a varied diet to any animal you care for. For my own feeders, I use 3 different species of roaches, 2 species of moth, and the occasional larvae. For very young slings or nymphs I use both species of fruit flies. My spiders will have mealworms in dietary rotation as well.
- If you care for over 20+ predatory inverts, I recommend owning a small roach colony. I also recommend making your own fruit fly cultures if you have plans to breed or own multiple young nymphs or slings.
- I recommend using a ketchup bottle to dispense fruit flies when feeding many young slings or mantis nymphs. It cuts down on escapees, makes distribution easier, and overall makes the endeavor much faster.
- Put a fruit flu culture in the fridge for 5-7 minutes to slow down the flies. This should make it easier to dispense them into containers.
- Flies (House or Bottle) are a lovely feeder choice for most predatory inverts, but I personally dislike them escaping on me. Pupae can be fridged for >1 Month. Feed emerged flies a 1:1 powdered milk and sugar mix alongside water.
- If you hate flies but need flying feeders, buy some waxmoths. Just remember to keep them warm, fed, and out of the fridge at all times. In comparison to flies, they smell fantastic.
- Certain species/individuals may take to different feeders better. Personally I have noted that the faster a roach is, the more enticing it is to predators. Dubia roaches can be sedentary and thus unappetizing.
- In the event you have a picky mantis, you may need to try gut feeding. To do so, rip a feeder in half and expose the white of the guts to your mantis's mouth. After a moment they will realize its food, and will likely grab the prey item.
- Roaches can be kept inside containers with a 1" petroleum jelly rim. Use this trick against roaches that can climb smooth surfaces. Remember to evenly coat it around the rim of the container!
- Dump Pea Flour into your grain-based cultures to ward off grain mites. Grain mites can quickly overtake fruit fly cultures, enclosures, and feeder bins. This can be obtained simply by blending split peas into a powder in a blender or food processor until a fine dust is produced.
- I do not recommend using crickets as a feeder. Crickets purchased from pet stores are often unclean and carry bacteria or other illness due to improper housing and cannibalistic corpse consumption. I do not approve of using them as feeders unless you breed the crickets yourself and can ensure they’re clean.
- I do not approve of black soldier flies (aka calciworms) as feeders, as they are often fed compost including coffee grounds. Coffee contains caffeine which is toxic to most invertebrates. There have been several reports of mantises getting sick after consuming them.
- Spiders eat by liquifing the insides of prey while mantises consume prey more like a blender. Because of this, higher chitin prey items are not reccomended for mantises as they may lead to blockages.
- Isopods are not good feeders. They are low in nutrients and very high in chitin. Avoid using them as CUC in mantis setups as mantises are likely to hunt larger species.
- I do not approve of using mealworms, buffalo worms or spikes/maggots as a long term feeder for mantises. They are too fatty to be considered a balanced diet on their own. Imagine eating only McDonald's your whole life. If you offer these items, use them sparingly like a treat or use them when in a pinch.
- Note: Mealworms are perfectly fine when used long-term for spiders, but I still recommend feeder variation.
