Your mantis just arrived in the mail. The box is sitting on your porch. Now what?

I ship live mantises every week, and the first 30 minutes after delivery are the most important. Here’s exactly what to do — and what not to do. New to ordering live insects? Skim our praying mantis buying guide and are praying mantises legal? before your box ships.

Step 1: Get the box inside immediately

Mantises ship in insulated boxes with heat or cold packs depending on the season. Those packs have a limited window. If your box has been sitting on a hot porch or a cold doorstep for hours, the temperature inside may have drifted outside the safe range.

Don’t leave the box outside. If you’re tracking delivery, bring it in as fast as you can — within minutes in extreme heat or cold, and within 30 minutes otherwise.

Step 2: Open the outer box, slowly

Cut the tape. Open the flaps. You’ll see insulation (usually styrofoam or insulated liner) and a deli cup or container inside. The mantis is in that cup.

Don’t shake the box. Don’t flip it. Don’t rush. The animal has been in transit for 12-20 hours and may be stressed, cold, or in an awkward position.

Step 3: Let it acclimate

Before you open the deli cup, let it sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes. This lets the mantis adjust gradually from shipping temperature to your room temperature.

If the box arrived cold, the slow 30-minute warm-up is exactly right. If it arrived hot (summer shipments), don’t bake it further — set the cup somewhere cool and shaded and crack ventilation sooner rather than later.

Place the cup somewhere with indirect light — not in direct sun, not in a dark closet. You want the mantis to register that conditions have changed and start to wake up if it’s been sluggish from cold.

Step 4: Open the cup and transfer

Once acclimated, open the deli cup near your prepared enclosure. Most mantises will be hanging from the lid or the mesh inside the cup.

Don’t grab the mantis. Tilt the cup so it can walk out on its own, or gently guide it onto your hand or a dowel and move it into the enclosure. If it doesn’t want to move, give it a few more minutes.

Some mantises come out swinging — threat displays, quick movements, trying to bolt. That’s normal. It’s been in a dark cup for a day. Let it be dramatic. If you’re new to keeping and want a species that’s calm out of the box, our Ghost Mantis and African Twig Mantis tend to be the most relaxed after shipping — see our roundup of the best pet mantis for beginners for more.

Step 5: Mist and wait

Once in the enclosure, mist the walls lightly. Not the mantis — the walls. It’ll drink water droplets on its own time.

Don’t feed it yet. Wait 12-24 hours before offering food. Many mantises refuse food after transit, and that’s completely normal. Pushing prey on a stressed animal just adds more stress.

Step 6: Take a photo

Photograph your mantis with the date visible. This is your arrival record. If anything goes wrong in the first 48 hours and you need to contact us, this photo helps.

When something looks wrong

Mantis isn’t moving. Give it time. Cold mantises are sluggish. If it’s been at room temperature for 30+ minutes and still hasn’t moved, gently mist near it (not on it). If there’s still no response after an hour, contact us.

Missing a leg or antenna. This can happen during shipping. It’s not ideal, but mantises can regenerate limbs during future molts if they’re still in juvenile instars. It won’t affect feeding or quality of life in most cases.

Mantis is on its back. This might be a molt in progress — do not touch it. If it’s been on its back for 30+ minutes and isn’t molting, gently offer a surface to grab onto (finger, paper towel, twig).

DOA (dead on arrival). It happens rarely, but it happens. Record a continuous unboxing video within 1 hour of delivery — start with the sealed box and keep recording until the deceased mantis is clearly visible in its original shipping cup — then file your claim at lobomantis.com/claim. We’ll send a replacement — or refund the animal’s price if we can’t restock soon. The guarantee covers dead-on-arrival on Priority Overnight orders only (post-arrival death isn’t covered); see the full Live Arrival Guarantee terms.

Your enclosure should already be set up

Don’t unbox your mantis and then scramble to set up the enclosure. Have it ready before the package arrives: correct size, mesh top, a perch, humidity dialed in, temperature in range. Every mantis from our shop ships with a species-specific care card so you know exactly what to prepare.

Not sure how to set up? Read our complete care guide or check the species-specific guide for whatever you ordered:

Also see our dedicated shipping & arrival guide for the full protocol.