Ok im new to bugs so please be patient with me.

Im looking into getting a few mantis and a few beetles. The beetles i dont have a problem with its the mantis i want some info on.

1) Which species of mantis to start off with?
2) Can you handle them?
3) How fast can they move? (this is just incase they escape while my dog is in the house)
4) Do they need substrate and if they do, what?
5) What do you guys feed yours on?
6) How big do they get?
7) How big does their living quarters need to be?

I can't remember the other questions i had in my head but im sure they will come back to me at some point.

Cheers
Nick

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They like good ventilation so netting on part of the lid is important I have found they like to hang from this most of the time anyway. When you get them they will probably be in a plastic cup with mesh covering the top, this is what I keep all mine in until they are too big, its simple you can keep a track of what they eat easier and they spend all their lives hanging from the mesh lid anyway so they are perfectly happy.

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Hi Nick

Si has pretty much answered your questions.

The African Mantis is a good starter, it is easilly handled, but vicious if you're a cricket!

A reasonable sized nymph will not move that fast, but if you have a male when adult they can and do fly.

Substrate can be anything from kitchen towel to potting compost. It's there to hold moisture for humidity, so your mantis can shed without any problems.

The size of their enclosure should be no smaller than 3 times their length and width should be twice their length. This gives them enough room to move about and shed safely. If you put any decoration in (plastic flowers etc.) you need to make sure this won't impede them shedding, otherwise you can end up with a deformed mantis! Again on decoration, avoid using commercially bought real flowers as they may contain insecticides. Also avoid handling your mantis (or anyone else) if you or they have just been to a garden centre etc. for the same reason.

We do have a couple of spare African Mantids (Sphodromantis Lineola) at the moment, if you're interested you're more than welcome to pm.

Thanks, Tony