Praying mantids eat a wide variety of pest insects, mites, and insect eggs.

 Mantis egg cases are commonly released by gardeners looking for general garden pest control without chemicals. They can be instrumental in beginning biological control as part of an integrated pest management program. Young mantids prey upon smaller soft-bodied insects, while adults graduate to larger pests. View an extended list of mantis prey below.

How Long Do Praying Mantis Egg Cases Take To Hatch?

Hatching requires at least 4 to 8 weeks of continuous warm weather (75-80°F, >50% RH) and can take as long as 6 weeks to begin. Once hatching begins, the young mantids emerge looking for something to eat. It takes just a few hours for an egg sack to complete hatching once it begins. Mantids prefer temperatures above 60°F for continued activity in the release area.

How Many Praying Mantids Are In One Egg Case?

Each praying mantis egg case, called ootheca, is collected in the wild and contains between 150-200 individual eggs.

How Many Egg Cases Should I Get?

We recommend using 3 cases every 5,000 sq. ft. or 10-100 cases per acre. 

It is important to space out each egg case to limit cannibalism rates among newly hatched mantids.

How To Hatch Mantis Egg Cases Indoors:

• Egg cases will need to be kept tightly closed in a container until they hatch.  Place them in a jar (like a pickle jar) with a tight-fitting lid. There is plenty of air in mason jars for the egg cases to remain viable. Do not use a plastic bag to hatch mantids. 
• To monitor hatching on individual cases, place only one egg case per container. Otherwise, you can use a larger jar and put multiples inside.
• Observe closely and often. The emerging mantids will need to be released as soon as they start hatching or they will begin to eat each other.
• Once you see the hatching, take them to your desired release area and sprinkle them out. You can leave the egg case outside in the event that there are still some mantids inside waiting to hatch.

If you choose to hatch outdoors, the cases and emerging mantids are vulnerable to predators and the weather. Additionally, it is easy to mistake a hatched and abandoned case for an unhatched one. Unless you closely observe the cases many times a day, you may not be aware that they have hatched and left the area. They push out between fibers in the case, which will then close up behind them, leaving no evidence of their departure.