''Deroplatys lobata'',

common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...

Southeast Asian dead leaf mantis or dead leaf mantis, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

praying mantis Mantises are an order (Mantodea) of insects that contains over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families. The largest family is the Mantidae ("mantids"). Mantises are distributed worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats. They ha ...

that inhabits

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Sumatra Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...

and the

Malay Peninsula The Malay Peninsula (Malay: ''Semenanjung Tanah Melayu'') is a peninsula in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The area ...

Habitat

''Deroplatys lobata'' live on the ground around dead leaves and bushes in damp areas,

tropical forests Tropical forests (a.k.a. jungle) are forested landscapes in tropical regions: ''i.e.'' land areas approximately bounded by the tropic of Cancer and Capricorn, but possibly affected by other factors such as prevailing winds. Some tropical fores ...

Description

This mantis mimics dead leaves. Females are about 65 to 70mm in length and males are about 45mm in length. 1st

instar An instar (, from the Latin '' īnstar'', "form", "likeness") is a developmental stage of arthropods, such as insects, between each moult (''ecdysis''), until sexual maturity is reached. Arthropods must shed the exoskeleton in order to grow or ass ...

nymph A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label=Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ty ...

s are up to 15mm in length and 2nd

s are about 21mm in length when their abdomens are expanded. Their coloring ranges from dark gray to light mottled gray, with many specimens exhibiting a slight pinkish 'flush' on the head and thorax. They also possess a broad prothorax that looks ripped and crumpled like a leaf. Females have a wider shield than males as early as the 4th

stage. Males have a slender body and a diamond shape shield.

Sexual Dimorphism

Due to

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...

typical of mantises, the male is much smaller. Adult females are about 65mm to 70mm in length while adult males are about 45mm in length. 3rd

s cannot be sexed by counting the segments on the bottom of the abdomen because unlike most

es 8 segments are visible in all of the 3rd

s and this is also true when they are in the 1st, 2nd

stage and their leaf shapes look just about the same at those stages. 4th instar

and up their leaf shapes look different from each other and get more different from each other with each molt. 6 segments are seen on females while 8 segments are seen on males at the 4th

and up.

Deroplatys lobata L4 nymphs female and male thorax

In Captivity

''Deroplatys lobata'' are commonly kept in captivity. Three other species in the genus ''

Deroplatys ''Deroplatys'' is a genus of mantis in the family Deroplatyidae. They are native to Asia and several share the common name of dead leaf mantis. Species The ''Mantodea Species File'' lists: * ''Deroplatys angustata'' (Westwood, 1845) * '' Derop ...

'' are kept in captivity, ''

Deroplatys desiccata ''Deroplatys desiccata'', known by the common name giant dead leaf mantis, is a praying mantis from Southeast Asia. This is the type species of genus ''Deroplatys''. Description ''D. desiccata'' takes its common name from its resemblance to dea ...

'', ''

Deroplatys truncata ''Deroplatys truncata'' is a species of praying mantis Mantises are an order (Mantodea) of insects that contains over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families. The largest family is the Mantidae ("mantids"). Mantises are distrib ...

'' and ''

Deroplatys trigonodera ''Deroplatys trigonodera'' is a species of praying mantis Mantises are an order (Mantodea) of insects that contains over 2,400 species in about 460 genera in 33 families. The largest family is the Mantidae ("mantids"). Mantises are dist ...

''.

Behavior

Nymph A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label=Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ty ...

s are skittish but at the 1st

they are calm and are not able to move quickly like most

es. After the 2nd

they start to get skittish.

s are known to play dead. If startled sometimes

s will jump up into the air and fall face up or down to the ground with their legs pulled in. Adults and

s are known to do a threat pose when startled. ''Deroplatys lobata'' are aggressive toward each other and they will sometimes eat each other so they should not be kept together in captivity. Younger

s are not very aggressive toward each other so can be kept together and there will rarely be any cannibalism if they are fed enough. From the 1st

to adult they often threaten each other by doing a threat pose and striking to scare off the other mantis. After laying the

ootheca An ootheca (pl. ''oothecae'' ) is a type of egg mass made by any member of a variety of species including mollusks (such as ''Turbinella laevigata''), mantises, and cockroaches. The word is a Latinized combination of ''oo-'', meaning "egg", f ...

the female sits on her

to defend it.

Care

These mantids need a very humid environment. Misting them heavily directly onto the mantis every evening works well. To keep the humidity up, substrate like moist sphagnum moss can be added but is not needed. ''Deroplatys lobata'' do well when the temperature is not below 75 degrees Fahrenheit to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Sudden changes in temperature may kill the mantis. If kept warmer

es will grow faster and live a shorter life but if kept cooler then they grow slower and live a longer life. When kept warmer it speeds up their metabolism and when kept cooler it slows down their metabolism and this is true for all

es. To molt ''Deroplatys lobata'' need a rough superior support, like a piece of rough bark or a rough stick at a diagonal angle or attached to the top of the container so that the nymph will hang upside down which is needed to molt. Their cage should be well ventilated with twigs for the mantis to perch on. They don't require much room as they are not active predators, but they do need room to molt. A good sized container for ''Deroplatys lobata'' in width and height is usually 3x the length of the mantis, but for young

s (1st to 2nd

nymphs) a 16oz container is good. During molting, it is vital that you do not disturb them. Also, make sure that the humidity is at a safe level because too much humidity can hinder the insect from drying out correctly and it might end up with bent legs and crippled arms.

Feeding

They will eat just about anything that is the right size. Start feeding the nymphs 1 or 2 days after hatching. 1st

s get up to 15mm long when their abdomens are expanded so they can tackle and eat large prey. 1st

s can eat ''

Drosophila melanogaster ''Drosophila melanogaster'' is a species of fly (the taxonomic order Diptera) in the family Drosophilidae. The species is often referred to as the fruit fly or lesser fruit fly, or less commonly the "vinegar fly" or "pomace fly". Starting with Ch ...

'' fruit flies and ''Drosophila hydei'' fruit flies and

house flies The housefly (''Musca domestica'') is a fly of the suborder Cyclorrhapha. It is believed to have evolved in the Cenozoic Era, possibly in the Middle East, and has spread all over the world as a commensal of humans. It is the most common fly ...

but they could eat things much larger such as small roaches and

crickets Crickets are orthopteran insects which are related to bush crickets, and, more distantly, to grasshoppers. In older literature, such as Imms,Imms AD, rev. Richards OW & Davies RG (1970) ''A General Textbook of Entomology'' 9th Ed. Methuen 8 ...

as well as small

moth Moths are a paraphyletic group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not butterflies, with moths making up the vast majority of the order. There are thought to be approximately 160,000 species of moth, many of w ...

s, et cetera.

Breeding

Mating this large species is not easy. They usually get too stressed up when kept in a small cage, and if the temperature is too low, then they ignore each other completely. Mate the female as early as 4 weeks after molting to adult. Mate the male as early as 2 weeks. Females molt 8 times and males molt 6 times to become adult. About 3–4 weeks after mating, the female will make her first ootheca. This species can lay around 4–6 oothecae with a period of 4–6 weeks in between each ootheca. After 6 weeks of incubation at 30 C (86 F) and 70–80% humidity. Normal

e usually hatch out about 50 large nymphs and ''Deroplatys lobata''

Ootheca An ootheca (pl. ''oothecae'' ) is a type of egg mass made by any member of a variety of species including mollusks (such as ''Turbinella laevigata''), mantises, and cockroaches. The word is a Latinized combination of ''oo-'', meaning "egg", f ...

e are usually about 35 to 40mm in length.

Additional Images

File:Deroplatys lobata.JPG, Deroplatys lobata, 1st

on a hand File:Deroplatys lobata 1.JPG, Deroplatys lobata 1st

on a hand File:Deroplatys lobata 3.JPG, Two 1st

Deroplatys lobata

s (The one on the right is scared and is trying to look something like leaf.) File:Deroplatys lobata 2nd instar.JPG, Deroplatys lobata 2nd

(A little scared so he is flattened out with his front legs stretched out forward.) File:Deroplatys lobata 4.JPG, Deroplatys lobata 2nd

(He is scared so he is flattened out quite a bit but strangely his front legs are in their normal position.) File:Deroplatys lobata L2 nymph flattened out.JPG, Deroplatys lobata 2nd

(He is scared so he is flattened out quite a bit but strangely his front legs are in their normal position.) File:Deroplatys lobata nymph.JPG, Deroplatys lobata 2nd

File:Dead-leaf Mantis.jpg, Adult female ''Deroplatys lobata'' File:Deroplatys fg01.jpg, Adult female ''Deroplatys lobata'' File:Deroplatys fg06.jpg, Adult male ''Deroplatys lobata'' File:Deroplatys fg05.jpg, Adult male ''Deroplatys lobata'' File:Deroplatys fg04.jpg, Adult female ''Deroplatys lobata'' File:Deroplatys fg03.jpg, Adult female ''Deroplatys lobata'' File:Deroplatys fg02.jpg, Adult female ''Deroplatys lobata'' File:Deroplatys lobata L4 female and male 1.jpg, Female and male ''Deroplatys lobata'' 4th

s (female on the left, male on the right) File:Deroplatys lobata L4 male 2938.JPG,

Carapace A carapace is a Dorsum (biology), dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tor ...

of a male ''Deroplatys lobata'' 4th

File:Deroplatys lobata L4 female 32490.JPG,

of a female ''Deroplatys lobata'' 4th

File:Dead Deroplatys lobata L1 nymph4524.JPG, Dead 1st

File:Dead Deroplatys lobata L1 nymph 42535.JPG, Dead 1st

File:Dead Deroplatys lobata L1 nymph534.JPG, Dead 1st

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7423599

lobata Lobata is an order of Ctenophora in the class Tentaculata with smaller tentacles than other ctenophores, and distinctive flattened lobes extending outwards from their bodies. They grow up to about long. Anatomy The lobates have a pair of lo ...

Mantodea of Southeast Asia Insects of Thailand Insects of Indonesia Insects of Malaysia Insects of Borneo Insects of Java Fauna of Sumatra Peninsular Malaysia Insects described in 1838