Ghost Mantis (Phyllocrania paradoxa)

Size

Females up to 6cm (2.5in)

Males up to 5.5cm (2in)

Moisture

35-50% humidity, can tolerate higher

Spray daily or every other day

Temperature

22-27°C (72-80°F)

Prefers room temp or warmer, tolerates as low as 65°F.

Sexing

A trained eye can sex Ghosts by their crown at i2. Sexually dimorphic crown differences are easily distinguished at i3. Males will have a longer, more jagged crest, and females a rounder and wider one. Females have 6 abdominal segments, and males have 8.

Lifespan

After molting to adult, females will last 6-8 months. Males generally last only 2-4 months. Lifespans can often vary due to things such as diet, rate of feeding, and temperature. The colder it is, the slower they grow.

Instars

Both males and females mature at i8 and molt 7 times after hatching.

Feeding

Ghosts can be finicky and prefer flying prey. Fast roaches are also easy to feed with. Offer food when the abdomen is thin. Do not feed on a schedule.

i1: Fruit flies (D. melanogaster)

i2-i3: Fruit flies (D. melanogaster & D. hydei), micro roaches

i4-i6: Fruit flies (D. hydei), house flies, small roaches, small waxmoths, Crickets

i6-i8: House flies, greenbottle/bluebottle flies, small/medium roaches, waxmoths, small/medium grasshoppers, Crickets

Enclosure

i1-i3: 5.5oz deli container

i4-i6: 16oz deli container or larger

i6-i8: 32oz deli container or larger

Breeding

About 3 weeks after maturing to adulthood a female should be ready to breed. 2 weeks after molting a male should be ready. Sexual cannabalism is rare, but can happen.

Females are ooth printing presses once paired. They will lay around 10-13 ootheca, generally laying one every other week. Depending on size, each ootheca could hatch anywhere from 5-40 nymphs.

Other Information

This species of mantis may drastically change colors between molts. Ghosts also can and will play dead. Sudden movements may cause them to drop to the ground. Sometimes they are very convincing in their death feining, but most times they'll still grab right onto your finger and seemingly pop back to life like nothing happened.