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Enrichment for bugs in general is pretty simple! Depending on the species (and their adult size), a two gallon (for small species like Odontomantis sp., Acromantis sp. Amantis sp, etc) to ten gallon aquarium (for biggos like Tenodera sp., Heirodula sp., Rhombodera sp, etc) with mesh glued to to at least on of the walls (with a glue that dries without any residual stickiness–I’ve used hot glue for mine. Tape is dangerous and freshly molted bugs can easily lose limbs to an exposed sticky sliver of tape), as well as a mesh roof provides them with ample space the prowl about! Putting in an array of twigs, or planting a small plant in it provides excellent enrichment, as does providing a variety of prey items that it has to stalk and catch :D Just make sure that the enclosure isn’t overcrowded and has ample space to allow for safe molting. Here’s some examples of an enriching enclosure that uses fake ornaments:

And real plants:

With real plants, you may also end up with a few other denizens like worms, etc…which your mantis may happily snatch up, as well… And that’s fine, it’s perfectly healthy! “Enrichment” really just means providing an environment that allows the animal to present its full range of natural behaviors with ease and as it pleases. For a mantis, this means giving it some good space to prowl, and providing a variety of choices in places to sit in wait for prey–in a well lit, properly heated environment with a safe/appropriate source of moisture/water (which may mean daily misting for tropical species). The prey you choose for the mantis can also tie into enrichment. Dumping a bunch of flies or appropriately sized moths or grasshoppers into the enclosure is excellent enrichment, as these prey items will be very active and make use of the entire space (as opposed to crickets or mealworms, which will tend to burrow or hide away underneath things on the ground) It can be really fun to watch your mantis employ their ninja hunting skills on some of these food items!

hey, I recently got a mantis and I want to make sure she's properly taken care of, and I'm not sure if this is the place to ask but you're the first person that came to mind so... do mantids need enrichment of some kind, and if so, what can you do to provide it to them? thank you for your time!

I really don’t have mantis-specific knowledge, but I’ll see what I can do! I’ve seen the species-specific caresheets on this site recommended before, as far as general care and keeping goes. 

Enrichment for insects can be as simple as changing up the environment of their habitat: put in some new (appropriately cleaned) sticks, or rearrange some of the extant furniture. Since mantis eat live prey, each feeding will be enriching, but especially if once they’re large enough to eat diverse prey safely you occasionally alternate what you’re providing (make sure this is appropriate for the species you have, of course). 

I know @fimbry​ keeps mantis, so maybe they or other bugblr blogs can weigh in! 

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please watch this

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I designed some bugs (Read about Faebugs here!) (and I’ll probably design some more!) Edit 2: Devils flower is still up for grabs over on Patreon if you wanna try for his free giveaway!  I’ve also completed a new batch! The moths (+butterfly) in the bottom row!! They’re currently for sale over on Deviantart!:   https://al-kem-y.deviantart.com/art/Faebugs-Moth-flatsales-3-4-OPEN-717715197 GO GET ONE 8D ) Edit: Added the newest “mantis” batch! I’m giving the Devil’s Flower Mantis away..! If you want him, feel free to put your name into the hat over on Patreon!: https://www.patreon.com/posts/15520163 https://www.patreon.com/paintedbees

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A very gorgeous kitten, indeed!! Onto my mantis blog he goes 8D

What a gorgeous find!!

@bee-menagerie I found a very green kitten!

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a tiny Tenodera straggler. 

I tried to evict every last nymph yesterday, but when you have a hundred of these tiny guys running around, you’re destined to miss a few. I’ve been very careful not to scratch at any itch or tickle without first checking to make sure it’s not a nymph. This little guy, who I found on my foot, was thankful for it.  I’ll probably come across a few more over the next few days. 

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Nothing like a hot cup of L1′s in the morning. In related news, I learned that my enclosures do not have perfect seals. A Tendodera ooth hatched out, and I learned by way of [literally] 100 baby mantises loose in my office.  I don’t have the resources presently to raise L1′s, and so all these little kittens are being rounded up for release outside! (they are a native species to the area)

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Odontomantis sp.! As juveniles, they mimic ants. As adults, they are bright green with full wings capable of flight… they look just like your typical mantis! …except they don’t even reach a full inch in size.

These are the most common mantis I run into. But–they can be tricky to spot if you don’t know what to look for!

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She is good and studious. 

this praying mantis got me into art school 🍃✨

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A post shared by Samuel Ramsey (@drsammygrams)

Meet Chiquita Banana Ramsey, my new pet stick insect!! Isn’t she adorable! 😁😁😁😁😄

#DontHate #chiquita #Entomology #DoctorBuggs (at University of Maryland)

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10/10 quality content...!!

Thanks for tagging me!!

Baby Orchid Mantis. [video]

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look at my cat grow! 

Mora got her sub-adult wingbuds yesterday! Congrats, Morakot!! One more molt to go before you’re full grown! 

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Mora’s dinner bell.

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she grow!

Mora molted the other day!  Not sure what instar she’s at now… 4 or 5, would be my guess!  Pretty little bug~<3

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Dances with dinner

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Morakot’s enclosure on the bottom! :D I this this is my first example of a fake plant/non-living enclosure for a mantis! 

Two new enclosures! The top enclosure is for a juvenile Asian Painted Frog. The bottom enclosure is for an L3 or L4 Hierodula sp. praying mantis nymph. Hilariously, the frog’s not much larger than the mantis right now.  Though both denizens are in their respective enclosures, they’re hard (if not impossible) to find in these images. They are both masters of hiding hehe

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Runway model Morakot the Mantis. (Mora for short!)

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I’ve taken in a new mantis nymph. It must be christmas! 

It is about time, I suppose…