RESUMO
ABSTRACT Mantises can live for many months, are naturally voracious, and feed invariably on live prey. Many species have a propensity for cannibalism and cannot be kept together for most of their life cycle, which makes large-scale rearing typically time-consuming, thus easily becoming prohibitive. This is particularly true for early instars, because they are the most abundant stage of a developmental cohort. Such limitation hinders research on Mantodea which depend on live individuals, such as behavior, physiology, ontogeny, and others. In this work, a simple, low-maintenance "self-service" device is described, which is greatly effective in reducing the time needed for keeping live, individual, small to medium-sized mantises. Trial and error usage and modifications along eight years lead to many improvements, resulting in a nearly optimal device for its target purpose. The final model allows rearing large numbers of mantises while demanding only a fraction of the time demanded by conventional rearing techniques. Key advantages include prevention of cannibalism, the possibility of monitoring mantises individually, and full functioning autonomy of up to several weeks. The new device has ample potential in stimulating and supporting Mantodea research on diverse areas.
RESUMO
Foram realizadas coletas mensais de insetos de janeiro a dezembro de 2004, durante três noites de transição lunar minguante/nova, das 18:00 às 06:00 horas. Os espécimes foram capturados em um lençol iluminado com lâmpada de 250 watts, luz mista de vapor de mercúrio e lâmpada de 20 watts black light (BL) e black light bulb (BLB). A armadilha foi montada a 45 metros de altura numa torre metálica de 50 metros, que ultrapassa a maioria das copas das árvores, num platô de terra firme, na bacia do rio Cuieiras, Manaus, Amazonas, Brasil. Foram coletados 23 espécies de Mantodea, sendo Chaeteessidae (1 espécie); Mantoididae (2); Mantidae (15); Thespidae (2) e Acanthopidae (3). Seis espécies são novas e serão descritas oportunamente nos seguintes gêneros: Cardioptera Burmeister, 1838, Phyllovates Kirby, 1904, Pseudovates Saussure, 1869, Stagmomantis Saussure, 1869, Stagmatoptera Burmeister, 1838 e Metilia Stal, 1877. Três espécies registradas para o Brasil sem uma região determinada estão sendo registradas para a Amazônia brasileira: Heterovates pardalina Saussure, 1872, Macromantis ovalifolia (Stoll, 1813) e Photina reticulata (Burmeister, 1838). Quatro registros são novos para o estado do Amazonas: Angela guianensis Rehn, 1906, Photina gracillis Giglio-Tos, 1915, Raptrix perspicua (Fabricius, 1787) e Vates festae Gigio-Tos, 1914. Os números de indivíduos, em cada coleta mensal, são apresentados para cada espécie.
Insect collections were carried out monthly from January to December of 2004, during three nights of lunar transition third quarter moon/new moon from 18 p.m. to 6 a.m. They were collected over a vertical white sheet illuminated by a 250 watts mixed light and a 20 watts black light (BL) and black light bulb (BLB) lamps. The light trap was mounted at 45 meters height in a metallic tower of 50 meters height, in a "platô de terra firme", in the Cueiras River basin, in Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. It was collected 23 species of Mantodea: Chaeteessidae (1 species); Mantoididae (2); Mantidae (15); Thespidae (2) and Acanthopidae (3). Six new species were registered and they will be described opportunely in the following genera: Cardioptera Burmeister, 1838; Phyllovates Kirby, 1904; Pseudovates Saussure, 1869; Stagmomantis Saussure, 1869; Stagmatoptera Burmeister, 1838 and Metilia Stal, 1877. Three species previously recorded to an indetermined Brazilian region are being recorded to Brazilian Amazon: Heterovates pardalina Saussure, 1872; Macromantis ovalifolia (Stoll, 1813) and Photina reticulata (Burmeister, 1838). Four records are new for the Amazonas state: Angela guianensis Rehn, 1906; Photina gracillis Giglio-Tos, 1915; Raptrix perspicua (Fabricius, 1787) and Vates festae Gigio-Tos, 1914. The specimens number collected monthly are presented for each species.