The Nature of Things

Is it an alien invader? Our new overlord from the planet Zebo? It does look like something from our worst nightmares and has been the basis for some of the monsters created by moviemakers to scare the bejeezus out of us, but actually it is a common backyard resident - the praying mantis. A voracious predator of other insects, it is absolutely a monster from their worst nightmares - assuming insects have nightmares. It eats prodigious amounts of bad insects and so is the gardener's friend. Unfortunately, it does not discriminate and so it eats plenty of what we consider good insects as well. But on the whole, the balance seems to be on the positive side. Gardeners who don't find sufficient mantises in their spaces often purchase mantis egg cases to increase the population. Lucky me - I have plenty of the scary-looking green monsters in my garden.   He looks hungry, doesn't he? Better watch out, bugs!

While I was watering a pot of gerbera daisies yesterday, I became aware that the daisies had a visitor aboard. See him? He's well-camouflaged, wearing the same color as the leaves, and sitting just to the right of the flower. That's right - he's a praying mantis, one of the most interesting of predatory insects. Here he is from a slightly different angle. From behind, you can get an idea of those relatively large front legs which he uses to capture his prey - things like moths, crickets, grasshoppers, flies, and just about any other insect that comes within reach. Those legs are equipped with spikes that help him snare his prey and hold it in place while he devours it at his leisure. Not only do the mantises eat other kinds of insects, they are also known to eat their own kind. The most notorious cannibalistic behavior is that of the female mantis who sometimes eats her mate just after, or even during, the act of mating. This however does not seem to deter the horny males. ...