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A praying mantis, or praying mantid, is the common name for an insect of the order Mantodea. Often mistakenly spelled preying mantis (an eggcorn, since they are notoriously predatory), they are in fact named for the typical "prayer-like" stance. The word mantis derives from the Greek word mantis for prophet or fortune teller.

Mantids, with their huge compound eyes mounted on a triangular head, have a large field of vision. They use sight for detecting movement of prey and swivel their heads to bring their prey into a binocular field of view. They have a fully articulated head, and are able to swivel it 180 degrees as well as pivot it. Their antennae are used for smell.

Praying mantids can be found in all parts of the world with mild winters and sufficient vegetation. Praying mantids will spend most of their time in a garden, forest or other vegetated area.

Being a carnivorous insect, the mantis feeds primarily on other insects. However, it is not uncommon for larger mantids to consume small reptiles, birds and even small mammals. To capture their prey, mantids use their camouflage to blend in with the surroundings and wait for the prey to be within striking distance. They then use their raptorial front legs to quickly snatch the victim and devour it. it then uses the front legs to help posistion the victim so it may eat it better.

The primary predators of the praying mantis are frogs, monkeys, larger birds, spiders and snakes. Praying mantids will also prey on each other, usually during the nymph stage and during mating (Patterson), as well as when there is no other prey.

When threatened, praying mantids stand tall and spread their forelegs to allow them to penetrate the target, with their wings fanning out wide and mouths open. The fanning of the wings is used to make the mantis seem larger and to scare the opponent, with some species having bright colors and patterns on their hind wings and inner surfaces of their front legs for this purpose. If harassment persists, the mantis will then strike with their forelegs and attempt to pinch, bite or slash. They also may make a hissing sound.

Mantids do not develop wings until the final moult. Some mantids do not develop wings at all, or may have small flightless wings. The only time mantids fly is when the adult female begins to emit pheromones which attract males for mating. Contrary to popular belief, not all males become the meal of the female. Male mantids fly at night, as they seem to be attracted to artificial lights.

Bats, one of the mantid's natural predators, feed at night when the males are busy locating a mate. Bats use echolocation to pinpoint their prey. According to Yager and May, praying mantids are able to hear these sounds and when the frequency begins to increase rapidly, indicating an approaching bat, mantids will stop flying horizontally and begin a descending spiral toward the safety of the ground. Often this descent will be preceded by an aerial loop or spin. Other times, the entire descent will consist of a downward spiral.

The reproductive process in a majority of mantis species is marked by sexual cannibalism of the male by the female, and is an ongoing subject of research. The reason for sexual cannibalism has been the subject of some debate, with some considering submissive males to be achieving a selective advantage in their ability to produce offspring. This theory is supported by a quantifiable increase in the duration of copulation among male mantids who are cannibalized, in some cases doubling both the duration and the chance of fertilization. This is further supported in a study by J. P. Lelito and W. D. Brown where male mantids were seen to approach hungry females with more caution, and were shown to remain mounted on hungry females for a longer time, indicating that males actively avoiding cannibalism may mate with multiple females. The act of dismounting is one of the most dangerous times for male mantids during copulation, for it is at this time that female mantids most frequently cannibalize their mates. This increase in mounting duration was thought to indicate that males would be more prone to wait for an opportune time to dismount from a hungry female rather than from a satiated female that would be less likely to cannibalize its mate. Some consider this to be an indication that male submissiveness does not inherently increase male reproductive success, rather that more fit males are likely to approach a female with caution and escape.

There are approximately 2,000 mantid species worldwide, the majority are found in Asia. About 20 species are native to the USA. Two species (Chinese Mantis, T. sinensis and European Mantis, M. religiosa) were deliberately introduced to serve as pest control for agriculture. While it's legal to keep USA-native mantids in the USA, other non indigenous varieties are illegal to possess and release in the United States. Some prohibited mantids are the spiny flower mantis, orchid mantis, wondering violin mantis, ghost mantis, devils flower mantis, and Egyptian mantis.

Sources

• Wikipedia

Approximate Dimensions: 4.25"x2"x1"

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