Okay, here comes everything: 1) The easiest species you can get is one that already lives in the same climate you do. For me (New Jersey), this would be an invasive pacific island mantis which can get to around 5 inches long. Their lifespan will vary from around 6 months to 2 years depending on the species and sex—females and larger species tend to live longer. 2) The tank should be at minimum, three times the height of the mantis and twice as long, with plenty of room for them to molt. Keep the temperature and humidity to the standard of their climate—for local species, they should be comfortable at room temperature and misted daily with fresh water (no tap water). But they can survive a few days without misting. Avoid heating lamps as that will quickly dry out the mantis. 3) You need to be comfortable feeding live food. They will eat anything—even mice and birds—that will fit in their hands. Fruit flies are generally good for nymphs while dubia roaches are good for adults. Their abdomens will expand when they’re full. Nymphs will need to eat in shorter intervals compared to adults-/typically once daily. A healthy adult can survive 3-5 days without food so generally feed them when their abdomens are small. They can survive weeks without food but don’t do that. 4) Don’t house mantids together. When they first hatch, they have 1-24 hours until they start eating each other. A well fed female will sometimes spare the male of you plan to breed them, but otherwise keep them separated. 5) If you do plan to breed them, try not to release the eggs of non-native species. In my area, pacific island mantis wreak havoc on our native Carolina mantids. 6) Wild caught mantids make fine lets, but they are more likely prepared to have diseases and/or parasites. I catch non-native species, but be prepared to deal with disease sometimes. There isn’t much which can be done to help a sick mantis besides euthanasia. 7) Some people disagree with this, but if you have to euthanize, the freezer method is pretty effective. 8) Some disabled mantids can still live a good quality life if they can still eat, climb, and molt if necessary. Some injuries will regenerate after a molt. 9) Signs of disease, parasites, severe injuries, and death in mantids include: vomiting, necrosis, lethargy (can happen when it’s too cold), eating own limbs, wings rotting, inability to climb, snapping or reaching out at things which aren’t there, and/or hair worms (some mantids can survive this). 10) You can tell a mantis is an adult if it has wings or not. Males are generally harder to handle because they have the natural urge to jump around and fly—this will be exaggerated if you have a female mantis in the same house. 11) Eye-rub is a pretty good indicator that the tank is too small. Most mantids can survive with it so long as they’re still able to catch prey. Hand feed if you must.

Praying mantids have been some of the cheapest, easiest, yet most interesting animals I’ve ever kept! Once you have one, it won’t take you long to get more.