Praying Mantis Information

Known for their unique pose, Praying Mantis is a large insect from the order of Mantodea. It’s called “Praying” Mantis as it often stands in a pose that looks like it is praying. There are over 1,500 species of the Praying Mantis worldwide.

How about their house?

They are found in warm climates on bushes, trees, particularly in the tropics. They are often named after different areas in the world.

What do they eat?

The Praying Mantis is a carnivorous insect. It means they eat other smaller insects.

What do they look like?

They are a very colorful appetite. They can be green or brown, and range 2 to 3 inches in length. They have a triangular shaped head with large eyes on each side of their head. This is enabling them to see things very well. They also have a long torso and grasshopper type back legs, while their two front legs are have sharp spines that help the Praying Mantis capture and hold on to prey.

How about their lifespan?

Actually, they just can live in the wild for about 12 months. One of stranger thing is the female will often eat the male and the siblings will often eat each other.

Are they endangered?

In fact, they are harmless with human, but you should keep them in your yard in order to protect your grass from harmful insects and animals.

How was they born?

To be an adult Praying Mantis, they must go through three stages: the egg stage, nymph stage and adult stage.
In late autumn, the adult female Praying Mantis will lay up to 400 eggs. Eggs are laid in an egg case, or ootheca. They hatch in the spring and emerge as a nymph. The adult Praying Mantis will be developed by molting, shedding their skin. They shed or molts their exoskeleton up to 10 times during the summer.

What are interesting things about them?

• Praying Mantis is the only species that can turn their head side-to-side 180 degree.
• They have a single ear on the bottom of their abdomen.
• They cannot detect location, direction or frequency of the sound, but they may detect ultrasound.
• Main predators of them are owls, frogs, monkeys and bats.
• Although they look slow, they are extremely fast when they move to attack their prey.
• Over 1,500 species, around 20 species live in North America.