Hard ID?

[hikarishadow]

Hey all!

There's a beautiful little mantis in a Phoenix fish store I've seen since Christmas and he's been in the tiniest "critter keeper" with a couple rocks (not enough for a burrow or even to be concealed ever). I'd like to bring him home just to get him out of the place, but really want to do my research first! This is why I'm so interested in getting an ID.

I know this is SO annoying when people ask for an ID without a picture, but here goes:
He's the color of the bright green G. viridis in the top pic on Dr. Roy's viridis page, but has wicked fuchsia on telson/uropods and rapts. The staff was frustrating--one saying spearer, one saying smasher, both refused to go near to feed him for me to see and wouldn't let me do it. This makes it's a lot more difficult to determine, I know and I'm sorry. I'd say he's about three inches long, but was well tucked into what little cover it had. I couldn't see the meral spots. Antennal scales were the same green with possible pale specks from what I could see.

I'd also REALLY be willing to eat his $20 cost if someone wants him shipped to a happy home. I still have all the stuff from recently getting my little Ally from stomatopod.com so he'd be shipped the same way. My boyfriend says I can only have one stomatopod, lol (but I have a feeling it might be a bendable rule).

Thanks for ANY help! Again, I'm so sorry I don't have a picture, but I really had no idea he'd still be there after so long or I'd have brought a camera! I'd have to guess G. falcatus if I had to, but that pinky-purple really throws me. I'm hoping you guys with more experience with their colors and such can help!

[Mentat]

ID is important in regards to housing requirements, so good for you to research that. Understand your kind heart, but purchasing from LFS that won't feed animal in front of customer and furthermore give basic conflicting info on it, is a high risk. Sorry about controlling anti-mantis boyfriend LOL.

[Fuegan]

Look at H. Stoliura pictures...

Probably not it but worth a shot with the purple colour.

[hikarishadow]

After seeing Gozer's G. chiragra, that's exactly what the little guy was! Thanks for you help!!

[Nightwitch]

Good for you for wanting to do the right thing. I was in a similar situation today. I saw a squilla empusa in a tank at a nearby fish store, and it had a rocky substrate, was being kept at standard reef temperatures, and had snails in the tank for food. I told the guys there what they had, and that it needed a muddy substrate to dig a burrow, that it was nocturnal and was probably stressed by the bright lights, and that it ate fish, but I don't really expect them to take any action on it. It's probably not cost-effective for them to set up something sufficient to maintain the animal properly, especially not if they're trying to move it for a relatively low price in the world of saltwater animals. I would get it out of there, but I don't have a tank to support a large spearer right now.