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Praying mantis hatching tips and tricksUpdated 13 days ago

Your baby mantises will emerge from their ootheca within 12 weeks. Here's how to help ensure you have a successful egg case. 

  • Suspend the egg case in the Hatching Plant Egg case holder. If you do not have a Hatching plant, you can suspend the egg case with a stick with a fork in it like this. 
  • Maintain the egg case at room temperature. 
  • Do not expose it to sunlight or drafts.
  • Provide humidity by misting the enclosure (do not mist the egg case directly) dehydration is one of the main reasons an egg case will fail.
  • Do not jostle the ootheca.
  • Be patient! We know it's tough to wait but sometimes it takes a while for the nymphs to emerge. It can take up to 12 weeks for the ootheca to hatch. 
  • When your nymphs are emerging from the egg case, do not disturb the habitat. 
  • Do not touch the hatchlings when they are emerging as they are very fragile at this time.
  • Once the baby mantids have emerged, release them into your garden. 

 

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