Preying Mantids
The preying mantis is on of natures most efficient hunters. If it moves it’s called food. An egg casing will hatch out between 50 to 150 young preying mantids, but you must be patient as sometime it may take over a month for the young to finally appear. For best results, attach the egg case to a branch and place in an aquarium so that the egg case is a minimum of 15 cm (3 inches) above the floor. Immediately after hatching, the young need somewhere to hide, so any type of vegetable matter placed on the floor of the aquarium will greatly help survival. If you do not plan to release the preying mantids into your garden, they will need feeding. Grasshoppers, flies, or crickets (you can get these at a pet shop) are suitable food items. Preying mantids also are a great classroom project.
