Description
Scientific Name: Idolomantis diabolica
Lifespan: Around 1 year
The Giant Devil’s Flower Mantis, commonly known as the Devil’s Flower Mantis, is a native of Tanzania and is regarded as one of the biggest praying mantis species that resembles a flower. Its scientific name is Idolomantis diabolica. It frequently gets mixed up with the little devil’s flower mantis (Blepharopsis mendica), commonly known as the Devil’s flower mantis. The Devil’s Flower Mantis is known as the “King of All Mantis” because to its magnificent appearance, size, and rarity. These characteristics have elevated this critter to the top of the list of mantis species that people want to keep as pets.
The magnificent and enormous devil’s flower mantis looks just like a flower. Its body is colored in shades of white, brown, burgundy, and green. The center of its bright green wing case is a sizable ocellus. This insect is a great master of disguise thanks to its green or brown body and leafy projections on its legs, which enable it to blend in with its surroundings. The male of every species of mantises has 8 segments on its abdomen, compared to the female’s 6 or 7 segments. The variation in the number of segments makes it simple to identify the insect’s sex.
Habitat
In addition to being a native of Africa, the gorgeous and amazing Devils Flower Mantis also evolved as a species in Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Malawi, Somalia, and Uganda.
Behavior
This particular species of mantis is extremely nervous and often becomes stressed. This mantis’s stress response is either to flee in a panic, to crash into objects in the enclosure, or to showcase its exquisite deimatic display.
Your pet mantis will likely spend hours or even days sitting in the same position because it is not a very active bug. They pursue their prey and defend themselves from predators by using their remarkable camouflage abilities.
Keeping as a Pet/ In Captivity
Tank Size
The minimal enclosure for the Devil’s Flower Mantis can be determined by taking its length and multiplying it by 3 for the height and by 2 for the width, as is the case with all mantis species. This gives us a minimum cage size for an adult female of about 15 inches high and 10 inches wide. But remember that this is just the minimal size. It is advised to use a larger enclosure because this mantis requires a lot of area.
Temperature & Humidity
The Devil’s Flower Mantis requires an extremely high temperature, which is one of the reasons it is challenging to care for. These insects are indigenous to Africa, which experiences very hot temperatures. In order for them to feel comfortable in captivity, their natural environment must be closely resembled.
This indicates that the temperature you should give them should range from 85°F to 104°F, with 95°F being the best temperature for them. The temperature may drop to about 70 °F at night. Since the majority of people do not reside in homes with such high ambient temperatures, additional heating is necessary. Heat mats or lights can be used for this.
Aim for a relative humidity level of at least 40% to 50%. You need to spray the cage to maintain the humidity. Additionally, you could set up a small gravel dish buried in the substrate, filled with water. The evaporation will aid in maintaining high humidity levels.
Diet & Feeding
You should only give your Devil’s Flower Mantis flying insects to eat because of the way they hunt. Except when they are within striking distance and the mantis is hungry, they will ignore non-flying insects. They are not healthy for them, despite the fact that they will consume other non-flying insects if they have no other option.
Flies should make up almost all of their food, but which particular flies they should eat depends on what stage of life they are in.
Table
