Gonodactylus
09/26/2001, 10:18 AM
There has been quite a bit of discussion lately about shipping stomatopods. We do it all the time and here are a few suggestions that might help.
1. Cold is probably your biggest problem. Most mantis can't survive more than a few hours below 68 F and if they drop below 60 they will probably die. (Hemisquilla ensigera from Southern California and other temperate water species are the exception.) This means you need a well-insulated container. We use medical supply shipping containers that have 2 inches of foam all round. The heat packs that commercial shippers use work well, but only if you have the right size pack for the container. If the pack is too large, you will cook the animal. Don't try handwarmers sold for skiing. They get way too hot. Also, pay attention to the weather. In winter, if there is a storm brewing either on your end or at the destination, forget it. Over night express is really the safest way to ship. Anything that takes more than 24 hours is pushing it.
2. Animals will punch holes in the container, but this is not as much of a problem as you might think. We often use heavy, double plastic bags for large animals. The trick is to make sure that animals can't see one another. use black plastic to visually isolate the bags. Commercial shippers use bags that have black bottoms and sides, but but a black garbage bag cut up will do. You need something opaque since animals will strike at shaddows.
3. Obvioiusly place only one animal in a bag unless you confine each animal to a separate container that prevents from strike other animals. For animals under 3 inches, we use 2 or 3 oz. plastic bottles with lots of holes (1/8 inch) drilled in them. This keeps the animals from getting to one another, keeps them from puncturing the bag, and provides them with something hold on to which reduces stress. They are in fact like the cavities the animals typically live in.
4. Oxygen is far more important than the amount of water used. The bags or containers used to ship should be no more than 1/4 full. If you can get a supply of oxygen, top off the container with it. Don't "borrow" some from an emergency or medical supply. You might need it some day! Many carriers prohibit shipments containing pure oxygen. Check. If they do, simply minimize the amount of time the container is sealed and leave lots of room for air.
This is getting near the maximum message length. I'll continue it in another posting.
1. Cold is probably your biggest problem. Most mantis can't survive more than a few hours below 68 F and if they drop below 60 they will probably die. (Hemisquilla ensigera from Southern California and other temperate water species are the exception.) This means you need a well-insulated container. We use medical supply shipping containers that have 2 inches of foam all round. The heat packs that commercial shippers use work well, but only if you have the right size pack for the container. If the pack is too large, you will cook the animal. Don't try handwarmers sold for skiing. They get way too hot. Also, pay attention to the weather. In winter, if there is a storm brewing either on your end or at the destination, forget it. Over night express is really the safest way to ship. Anything that takes more than 24 hours is pushing it.
2. Animals will punch holes in the container, but this is not as much of a problem as you might think. We often use heavy, double plastic bags for large animals. The trick is to make sure that animals can't see one another. use black plastic to visually isolate the bags. Commercial shippers use bags that have black bottoms and sides, but but a black garbage bag cut up will do. You need something opaque since animals will strike at shaddows.
3. Obvioiusly place only one animal in a bag unless you confine each animal to a separate container that prevents from strike other animals. For animals under 3 inches, we use 2 or 3 oz. plastic bottles with lots of holes (1/8 inch) drilled in them. This keeps the animals from getting to one another, keeps them from puncturing the bag, and provides them with something hold on to which reduces stress. They are in fact like the cavities the animals typically live in.
4. Oxygen is far more important than the amount of water used. The bags or containers used to ship should be no more than 1/4 full. If you can get a supply of oxygen, top off the container with it. Don't "borrow" some from an emergency or medical supply. You might need it some day! Many carriers prohibit shipments containing pure oxygen. Check. If they do, simply minimize the amount of time the container is sealed and leave lots of room for air.
This is getting near the maximum message length. I'll continue it in another posting.