Praying Mantids: A Wing and A Prayer

THE PRAYING MANTIDS, or mantises, have fascinated man throughout time. The French once thought that a mantid would point a lost child home. In some parts of Africa, it is considered good luck if one of these curious creatures lands on you. The word "mantis" comes from the Greek word for prophet or seer. Because of the way the insects hold up the fronts of their bodies and position their huge forelegs when at rest, it appears as though they are praying. The strange stance, however, is not an act of reverence but instead the position the fierce predators take while waiting to ambush other insects.

Praying mantids are found on every continent except Antarctica. Of the 1,800 or so known species, most are between one and three inches in length and dine primarily on insects. Some tropical ones may grow to eight inches or more and can occasionally add hummingbirds to their diet.

Mantids have large, compound eyes in huge, triangular heads. Their long, flexible necks bend easily, allowing them to turn their heads 180 degrees from side to side, giving them a 300-degree field of vision. They can spot the slightest movement 60 feet away. Their powerful forelegs are armed with rows of overlapping spikes to hold their prey while they devour it with strong, sharp mandibles.

Masters of disguise, mantids are typically green or brown, but many species will take on the color of their habitat. They may mimic leaves, twigs, grass, and even ants; some tropical species so closely resemble flowers that other insects will land on them in search of nectar.

Because of their voracious appetite for insects, praying mantids are considered a friend to farmers and gardeners. Although they may eat other beneficial insects (and, occasionally, each other), their preference is for the sucking and cutting insects that do the greatest damage to crops.

As with many of nature's predators, the hunters often become the hunted. Mantids' natural enemies include birds, bats, spiders, snakes, and lizards. With so many enemies to worry about, perhaps the praying mantids actually are saying their prayers.

– –George and Becky Lohmiller