There is a belief among people that the saliva of the praying mantis insect can poison a mule. Therefore, it is sometimes called the “mule killer.” Other nicknames are “soothsayer”, “prophet”.
All this arose due to the unusual appearance and behavior of this amazing insect.
Who is the praying mantis
The praying mantis is a large predatory insectThe scientific name of the insect is the common mantis. Famous explorer animals Carl Linnaeus mentions it as Mantis religiosa. From Greek, the first part is translated as “prophet”, and the second, from Latin – “religious”.
The insect is quite large, up to 5–7 cm, with an elongated, narrow body and long limbs. The wings are large and well developed, but more often they simply run on the ground than fly.
The abdomen is shaped like an egg. Body color varies. The main color is green, but it can also have a yellow tint, gray or brown. Thanks to this, it can be difficult to notice among the grass or branches.
The praying mantis is the closest relative of cockroaches, but unlike them, it is a predatory insect. It grabs prey with its front paws and eats it. When the praying mantis sits motionless, it raises and folds these legs as if praying. This is where all his nicknames came from.
Master Hunter
But this position is not at all intended for prayer. At this time he is preparing for the hunt. This is such a bloodthirsty creature that it is ready, in this outwardly submissive pose, to grab any insect running nearby.
It is this constant readiness to attack that makes the predator hold its front legs like a trap. On their inner part there are sharp serrations that tenaciously hold prey.
This is the only insect that can turn its head back. A fly, wasp, mosquito or butterfly gapes, and he’s right there. Lightning quickly grabs them into its trap paws and then slowly eats them.
Females are not afraid to grab prey much larger than themselves - frogs, lizards and even rodents!
Features of reproduction
In general, females are very aggressive, especially during the mating season. They even attack each other. The loser becomes food for the winner.
At first, the male is of interest to her only as prey. But driven by instinct, he tries in every possible way to attract her attention. To do this, the mantis performs a kind of dance in front of the female, which then ends in death for him.
The great need for protein for the formation of eggs forces the female to eat even the male. This sometimes happens right during mating - she bites off her partner’s head. But more often he does this afterwards, eating it whole.
The female lays eggs in special capsules of a protein solidified substance called ootheca. From 10 to 400 eggs lie in rows in it. Ootheca is very durable and can withstand even frosts. In some areas, the eggs remain there all winter.
Praying mantises: benefits and harms
Praying mantises provide great assistance to humans by destroying large numbers of agricultural pests. In the USA and Asian countries they are kept at home to control flies. Mantis catchers often collect oothecae and sell them to farmers as a biological weapon against harmful insects. The praying mantises living in the gardens will not allow uninvited guests to breed.
Who do you think this story will be about? About an insect called a praying mantis. Why this six-legged creature was called that, and what the praying mantis insect is - let’s try to figure it out...
Praying mantises are part of the cockroach order; they form a species consisting of approximately 3 thousand species. The insect got its name because of its manner in a special way fold its front legs, which makes it look like a praying person.
Appearance of a praying mantis
- large insects growing up to 11 centimeters in length.
This insect may have different colors– the color of the praying mantis fully matches its habitat; it can match the color of leaves, grass and stones.
When stationary, the praying mantis is very difficult to detect. The predator moves slowly, but if it is in danger, it becomes swift. After he finds himself on safe distance, freezes.
The wings of these insects are well developed, so they fly well, but this method Only males use movement, and they fly at night, and during the day they can, occasionally, flutter from one branch to another.
The head of the praying mantis has a triangular shape, and it is quite mobile. This insect has well-developed eyes, so it sees perfectly. The predator monitors the situation and reacts with lightning speed to any moving object. It begins to approach the victim and then grabs it with its strong limbs. Afterwards all he can do is slowly eat the prey.
Habitat of praying mantises
These insects are common in such parts of the world as: Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia and America.
The lifestyle of praying mantises and their diet
Praying mantises are predators; their main food is their classmates, i.e. – other insects. The largest individuals can attack, and even birds. The predator eats its prey slowly, the feeding process lasts about 3 hours, and the food is digested over the course of a week.
Mantises hunt small insects from ambush. Thanks to the protective coloring, the predator is very difficult to notice. He simply waits for some insect to crawl past him and then grabs it. And the praying mantises chase large victims; when they catch up, they jump on their backs, grab them by the head, and begin to slowly eat them.
The praying mantis, despite its “pious” name, is a real predator. Mantises only react to moving targets and are not interested in stationary objects. This predator is incredibly voracious. An adult mantis eats up to 7 cockroaches measuring 1 centimeter at a time. It takes 30 minutes to eat each victim. First the insect eats soft fabrics, and then proceeds to the hard ones. The mantis leaves only bits of limbs and wings from the cockroach. The praying mantis can eat softer insects whole.
As a rule, the insect chooses a sedentary lifestyle; if there is enough food, the mantis can live on one tree throughout its life. Praying mantises are most often located on the branches of trees and bushes, but can also freeze in the grass or directly on the ground.
Praying mantises are very prolific creatures. Reproduction of praying mantises
These insects breed at the end of summer. In our country, common praying mantises mate in August - September. In 50% of cases, during mating, the female eats the male. Females are much larger than males, they need protein, so males are part of their diet.
A female praying mantis lays 100-300 eggs. She glues the eggs with a special adhesive substance, which hardens and forms a capsule. These capsules are called ootheca. The capsule has a hard structure, it sticks to plants or stones and reliably protects the egg from external factors. Inside the capsule is supported optimal temperature and humidity. In the ooteca, the eggs do not die even when the temperature drops to -18 degrees.
The protective “stand” of the insect gives it its name - the legs are folded like those of a praying person. In temperate climates, eggs overwinter, and in warm areas incubation period lasts a month, after which the eggs hatch into larvae. The larvae have small spines on their surface, thanks to which they crawl out of the capsule. When free, the larvae molt. After shedding their skins, they resemble adults, but without wings. The larvae are very mobile and have protective colors.
In most regions, the larvae hatch in April-May. In 2.5 months they have to molt 5 times, only after that they turn into adult insects. The process of puberty takes 2 weeks, and then the males look for females to mate with. The lifespan of praying mantises is 2 months. The males are the first to die; after mating, they stop looking for prey, become lethargic and die. Males live until September, and females until October.
At first glance, the praying mantis is an absolutely harmless insect. Fragile, thin, invisible in the grass and on tree branches. But it's not what it seems. First of all, it is almost clear to everyone that it was called that because of its front legs prayerfully folded. He can sit in his position for hours, but there is no need to be deceived, the praying mantis insect is a formidable predator. He attacks victims much larger than himself. Mantises are known to fight with large spiders and even snakes! You can’t help but wonder if people made a mistake with the name?
Compared to its relatives, it is a fairly large representative of its class. Individual individuals can reach 76 millimeters in length and even more. Females are usually larger than males. If the size is the same, then it is quite difficult to determine the sex of individuals before adulthood.
They mimic perfectly. There are species that are very similar to flowers, others can easily get lost in the leaves, and all with one purpose - to waylay a suitable victim! They are not at all dangerous for people. The only way a praying mantis insect can harm a person is by scratching a finger with the jagged edges of its front legs if handled carelessly.
People who see them for the first time simply do not believe at first that this is a creature of earthly origin. It's very unusual appearance and his whole alien appearance. And, of course, it is very difficult to realize that this is a formidable predator. It is not always possible to clearly distinguish the appearance of such small creature like a praying mantis. The insect (its photo can fascinate anyone) seems to be dancing a strange ritual dance.
Some people even keep them at home because they are not too difficult to care for. The insect will need to change housing several times. At first, a yogurt container will do just fine, but later you will have to find a larger “apartment” for him. Throughout its life, the praying mantis insect sheds its skin, increasing in size.
We must not forget to feed him on time, and there should always be branches in his home on which he can hang, this is especially important during periods of molting. But he doesn’t need to drink - he just needs to provide sufficient air humidity.
If you decide to breed different-sex individuals, then you need, firstly, to prepare a large cage, and secondly, a sufficient amount of food. Otherwise, the larger female may eat the male after mating. It can occur as soon as the individuals are together or over the next few days. After the end of the mating period, the male must be resettled again.
In due time, the female lays from 30 to 300 eggs, from which new individuals will hatch in a few months. To prevent cannibalism among newborns, you need to put them in a large container with plenty of secret corners and live food. After the second or third molt, they all need to be seated.
The praying mantis insect, unlike most of its fellows, has a number of unique skills. In addition to excellent mimicry abilities, he can turn his head almost 180 degrees in different directions and even look over his shoulder. By the way, females, unlike males, cannot fly, although representatives of both sexes have wings. They are simply too heavy to fly.
Insect mantis In the recent past, many scientists and researchers classified them as belonging to the same family due to a number of similar elements in the structure of the wings and body.
However, today this guess has been refuted by official science and these insects are classified as a separate species, which has its own specific features and habits.
The order was named just that – “mantises”, and at the moment it includes about two and a half thousand species.
About the praying mantis we can definitely say that a rare other insect can compete with it in the number of mentions in the mythologies of various peoples of the world.
For example, the ancient Chinese associated the praying mantis with stubbornness and greed; the Greeks believed that it had the ability to predict the weather and was a harbinger of spring.
The Bushmen were sure that the image of the praying mantis was directly related to cunning and resourcefulness, and the Turks were sure that it always points its limbs directly in the direction of the holy Mecca.
Asians often gave their offspring fried eggs insect to get rid of such an unpleasant illness as enuresis, and Europeans noticed the similarity of the praying mantis with monks offering prayers and awarded it the name Mantis religiosa.
The praying mantis is a large insect, its size can exceed 10-12 cm
Features and habitat
By description of the insect mantis you can see that it is quite large, and the length of its body can reach ten or more centimeters.
The typical color characteristic of these insects is white-yellow or green. However, it varies greatly depending on habitat and time of year.
Thanks to the natural ability of mimicry, the color of the insect can exactly repeat the color of stones, branches, trees and grass, so if the mantis is in a motionless state, it is very difficult to recognize it with the naked eye among the stormy landscape.
The triangular head is highly mobile (rotates 180 degrees) and connects directly to the chest. Usually on the paws you can notice a small dark spot.
The insect has incredibly developed front legs, which have quite powerful sharp spines, with the help of which it can actually grab its prey for further consumption.
The praying mantis has four wings, two of which are dense and narrow, and the other two are thin and wide and can open like a fan.
In the photo, the praying mantis spread its wings
The habitat of the praying mantis is a vast territory, including the countries of Southern Europe, Western and Central Asia, Australia, Belarus, Tatarstan, as well as numerous steppe regions.
This insect came to the USA on ships and merchant ships, where it inhabited the decks like cockroaches and.
Since sign of a praying mantis is increased thermophilicity, it can easily be found in the tropics and subtropics, where it inhabits not only rainforests, but also rocky areas such as deserts.
Character and lifestyle of the praying mantis
The praying mantis prefers to lead a lifestyle that is far from nomadic, that is, settling for a long time in the same area.
If there is a sufficient amount of food around, he can literally not leave the confines of one single plant or tree branch throughout his life.
Despite the fact that these insects can fly quite well and have two pairs of wings, they use them infrequently, preferring to move with the help of their long limbs.
Mostly males fly and exclusively in dark time days, flying from branch to branch or from bush to bush.
They can also move from tier to tier, and can be found both at the foot of a tall tree and at the top of its crown.
The praying mantis spends most of its time in one position (with its front legs raised high), for which, in fact, it got its name.
The praying mantis in the pose for which it got its name
Indeed, looking at it from the outside, it may seem that the insect is praying, but in fact it is busy guarding its future prey.
Despite the fact that the praying mantis has well-developed limbs and wings, it quite often becomes prey for various birds, since it is extremely bad at running away from the aggressor.
Perhaps it is for this reason that the insect tries to move as little as possible during daylight hours, preferring to blend in with the surrounding vegetation.
Although cockroaches are insects similar to praying mantis, you can notice that their habits are very different, especially since the praying mantis rarely gathers in large flocks.
Feeding a praying mantis
The praying mantis is a predatory insect, therefore, it feeds, accordingly, on insects, such as bugs, cockroaches, etc. Occasionally, even small lizards, frogs, birds and some small rodents become its prey.
The appetite of these insects is very good, and literally in a matter of months one individual is capable of eating several thousand insects of various sizes, from grasshoppers to aphids. In some cases, the praying mantis can even attack animals with a backbone.
Mantises are also characterized by cannibalism, that is, eating their relatives. For example, it often happens that female praying mantis eats the male immediately after the mating process, but sometimes she can eat him without waiting for the end of lovemaking.
To prevent this from happening, male praying mantis is forced to perform a kind of “dance”, thanks to which the female is able to distinguish him from prey and thereby keep him alive.
The photo shows the mating dance of a praying mantis
The praying mantis can sit motionless for a long time, merging with the surrounding vegetation, waiting for its prey.
When an unsuspecting animal or animal approaches the mantis, it makes a sharp lunge and grabs the victim with the help of its forelimbs, which have dangerous spines.
With these same paws, the mantis brings the prey directly to its mouth and begins to absorb it. It should be noted that the jaws of these insects are surprisingly well developed, so that it can easily “grind” a not very large rodent or a medium-sized frog.
If the potential prey is quite large, the mantis prefers to approach it from the back, and when it approaches it at a close distance, it makes a sharp lunge to capture it.
In general, the main diet of this insect is considered small insects, it can start hunting lizards and mice, being extremely hungry. In this case, he can easily turn from a hunter into a victim.
Reproduction and lifespan
Mantis mating in the wild it usually occurs from late summer to early autumn.
Males, using their own sense of smell, begin to intensively move around the habitat in search of females.
Contrary to established stereotypes, the female does not always eat the male after the mating process. This only applies to some varieties.
Those representatives of mantises that live in more northern latitudes need to cool the air temperature in order for the eggs to begin to hatch. In one clutch, a female can produce about two hundred eggs.
Praying mantises are often kept at home by insect lovers. If you want to purchase a similar copy for yourself, you can easily find photo of praying mantis with prices on the Internet. The lifespan of this insect is about six months.
This is not surprising, because the insect is very aggressive and even attacks its relatives. Even during mating, the female praying mantis is known to eat the male. In this regard, the question arises, what differences does the praying mantis insect have, why is this representative of arthropod dangerous and useful for humans? Does its size matter? After all, if we take flies and mosquitoes as an example, it becomes clear that even a tiny creature can cause serious harm to health. Thus, mosquitoes spread malaria and other serious illnesses. Praying mantises are not small by insect standards. Different types reach from four to nine centimeters in length! Add to this the ability to camouflage and the habits of a predator - there is something to worry about.
Why does a female praying mantis eat the male during mating??
The breeding season for praying mantises occurs from August to September. Males go in search of dangerous girlfriends, but family happiness is not expected for predatory insects. The female eats the male directly during mating, starting from the head. After all, the nerve nodes on the abdomen are responsible for the sexual process. Experts have studied this behavior of praying mantises.
In the early stages of research into the biology of these insects, scientists were of the opinion that the female behaved in such a way as to increase the amount of sperm she received from the agonizing male mantis.
Modern entomologists have come to the conclusion that this version is erroneous. After careful research, it became clear that the female praying mantis devours the male only in order to obtain additional source proteins for egg development.
Why is there an opinion that the female praying mantis necessarily eats the male during mating? This does not always happen. It is known that especially cautious males are able to complete their mission and quickly get out of the sight of their predatory friend.
Can a praying mantis bite a person??
Young praying mantises behave more modestly than adults, do not attack large prey and do not even try to bite a person. The insects do not pose a serious threat, but they can injure with their claws. An adult can easily survive such a nuisance, but it is better to protect a small child from meeting an aggressive praying mantis. The predator even hunts small birds and mammals if they were careless to disturb his peace.
Can a praying mantis bite an adult when it encounters it? Of course, such a possibility exists. However, children are eager to explore the world around us and have a better chance of meeting dangerous insects. It is better to keep very young children away from this creature to prevent pain. Don't frighten kids too much with the praying mantis. In the forest or steppe there are much more dangerous creatures: poisonous snakes, stinging wasps and infection-carrying rodents.
Benefits of the praying mantis
Praying mantises are widely used by gardeners to control pests. Because of their omnivorous nature, they quickly deal with all the inhabitants of the garden or garden, saving plants and vegetables from death. These insects have become faithful allies of humans in the agricultural sector. However, the main advantage of praying mantises is also its disadvantage. The fact is that along with pests, beneficial insects, such as bees, also die in their paws.
The insect mantis, what makes it dangerous and useful for humans is its aggressive gluttony. It bites furiously, fighting all living creatures, it is useful as an entomophage, destroying garden pests. In any case, the insect cannot but attract the attention of both scientists and ordinary people.
