Praying mantises are solitary predatory insects. Cannibalistic. They were named so by Karl Linnaeus for the constant pose of a "praying man."
Appearance and nutrition of praying mantises
The praying mantis is a chameleon, it can change color, depending on the environment in which it lives. It adjusts to the colors of trees, stones, branches and leaves. The color of the insect can be varied, the most common are green, yellow and brown.
An interesting feature of this type of insect is that they have only one ear, they are able to turn their head up to 180 degrees and even look over their shoulder.
The praying mantis has wings, but it flies very rarely. If there is enough food in its habitat, the insect will spend its entire life here. Danger or hunger can make it fly over. In addition, only male praying mantises are capable of flying, since females are larger and their wings cannot stand them.
The praying mantis is very slow, assuming the required color, it can remain motionless for a long time, waiting for prey. When approaching, the predator grabs it with its front paws, which are almost always raised up. They have special notches to help keep the caught prey. First he kills her and then eats her. The praying mantis feeds on flies, cockroaches, mosquitoes and spiders. Larger species can eat lizards, frogs and even birds.
The praying mantis is an extremely daring insect. He does not fly away from his enemies, but frightens them. To do this, the predator spreads its wings, rises on its hind legs, swinging to the sides, and makes threatening sounds.
For people, the praying mantis is very useful, as it performs the function of an orderly - a cleaner from pests, but sometimes it can also destroy beneficial insects - bees, ladybirds.
Breeding features of praying mantises
The period from August to September is the mating time for praying mantises. At this time, the male leaves the habitat, going in search of the female. If she is hungry, then she may well eat her boyfriend, since she is larger in size. And during copulation, he sometimes bites off his head. After fertilization, after a certain period of time, the female lays about a hundred eggs in a special sticky mass. Praying mantis larvae are small in size, but very mobile. At first, they feed on aphids, thrips, and can eat each other.
Praying mantises live for about three months, males die earlier than females. This is because after fertilization, they weaken, stop hunting, and at the same time, amino acids necessary for life disappear from their body.
