Mantis Diet Variety

[rwhhunt]

Dr Roy, I have a 5-6 in peacock, and I have been feeding him vitanmin enriched krill, gulf shrimp (from grocery), silversides, and the occasional gut packed ghost shrimp and crayfish. However, recently (for the past few weeks) he has been hesitant to eat anything I offer him. When i first got him over 6 months ago, he would eat 1-2 krill a day. Now, he will throw it back in my face! I originally thought it was because he was about to molt but several weeks later he has still not done so. I have figured out that he does NOT like garlic because I soak all my food in garlic guard for my other tanks, and usually will not eat it. With the plain krill I might have to shove it in his burrow, or stick it in his face until he takes it.... Maybe he is telling me that he wants a more variety in his diet. What other things do you feed your specimens that they seem to like and would be healthy and natural of their original environment???

 

[Gonodactylus]

Strange as it might seem, stomatopods don't usually like a varied diet. They are hesitant to switch from one prey to another unless they have to. O. scyllarus typically do well on krill, snails and crabs. They also usually will go for frozen raw shrimp. We buy tiger prawns at the fish market and feed mostly a diet of shrimp and snails.

A large O. s will often stop taking food two or three weeks before a molt. Smaller ones will eat up a few days before a molt.

Roy

 

[DaddyJax]

Just wondering would a cheap fresh water gold fish be okay to feed? The thought had crossed my mind after passing by a store that sold them for $.28!! Other wise I usually feed mine twice a week with a crayfish.

 

[Uriel]

I feed mine (all 5 of them, since my N. wenn died last week) thawed shrimp,fiddler crabs, snails,hermits and the occassional ghost shrimp.



-Ron

 

[rwhhunt]

no freshwater feeders (especially golfish), not healthy. however, I do give mine the very occasionaly FW crayfish...

 

[DaddyJax]

Okay thanks!