Praying for prey

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Praying Mantids have long, raptorial forelegs that are armed with spikes or spines.

What am I?

I am sitting.

I am waiting.

I am praying.

Or am I?

 

I AM a praying mantid.

When sitting, Praying Mantids rock or sway gently as if being blown by the wind.

My forelegs are held as though in prayer, but in reality they are ready for action. I am praying for prey. Some researchers have joked that my name should be changed to preying, as my innocent demeanour is nothing but camouflage.

Mantids, members of the order Mantodea, are closely related to termites and cockroaches, and it is thought that they descended from a common ancestor. They take their name from Greek ‘mantikos’, that ironically, given their nature, means soothsayer.

These insects, which hunt with stealth, possess long, raptorial forelegs that are armed with spikes or spines. This enables the Praying Mantid to maintain a secure hold and prevent its prey from escaping.

At the end of each leg is a delicate tarsus (lower foreleg) and a two-toed claw that acts as a foot. Praying Mantids are one of the few insects that can turn their heads 180 degrees; and truly have eyes at the back of their heads. Their complex compound eyes can see up to 20 metres. The flexible thorax (the upper part of the body) acts much like our necks, and permits the Praying Mantid’s head and forelegs to move.

Their success at hunting depends on their sight, thus they hunt mostly during the day.

They stalk their prey waiting for just the right moment to strike. These predominantly brown or green insects are well camouflaged imitating the plants on which they live. When sitting they rock or sway gently as if being blown by the wind. Some scientists believe this is a way of making them look like twigs.

Praying Mantids are sold as biological pest control, but in reality they are just as likely to take down a pollinating bumblebee as a pest. Their prey changes as the Praying Mantid grows. Immediately after hatching, Praying Mantids will prey upon small insects, but as they go through moults, increasing in size, the size of the prey also increases. The larger species have been known to prey on, besides other insects, scorpions, frogs, lizards and even small birds.

Despite being daytime hunters, Preying Mantids fly at night. It is mostly the males that fly as they are searching for the more sedentary females. They are attracted to artificial night lights and might fly towards the glow. Scientist believe that Praying Mantids take to the skies at night to avoid predation from birds. Some species are able to hear the echolocation used by bats and take evasive measures to avoid the hunters.

In addition to being preyed upon by birds and bats, frogs, spiders, monkeys and even snakes will eat Praying Mantids. When threatened, these insects will make themselves appear bigger by spreading their multicoloured (in some species) wings, they will strike with their forelegs, pinch and bite. Some species even make hissing sounds.

Most Praying Mantids are native to the tropics, but those which survive in the temperate regions, overwinter as eggs. The female lays hundreds of eggs in a foamy mass (ootheca) that gradually hardens. Praying Mantids go through three stages, egg, and nymph in the early stages of life, when the immature Praying Mantids imitate ants. This insect lives for 10 to 12 months and in temperate areas it over winters as eggs.

Elaborate courtships have been observed. It is believed that this occurs to turn the female’s attention from eating to mating, as in the laboratory it has been observed that females eat the males while mating. However, in the wild this is recorded less frequently.

Praying Mantids, despite changing environments, are not generally endangered. There is one species in Spain that is listed as near threatened and one species that is rare in Canada but common in the United States.

Praying Mantids have inspired artists and writers. In ancient Chinese poetry, Praying Mantids represented courage and fearlessness. They also inspired martial arts movements and fighting strategies. In mythologies of the indigenous San and Khoi people of South Africa, Praying Mantids are gods.

For me they represent the wild that has adapted to the urban environment.

The Malaysian Mantis has a long body and triangular head. It is an insect that can be seen if we are observant in our city gardens. The whitish and pinkish Malaysian orchid mantis (Hymenopus coronatus) looks like an orchid and is camouflaged as it waits for unwary insects.

In Malaysia these insects are not endangered, but they are incredibly valuable. They of course prey on pesky mosquitoes, but equally important, they remind us of our connection with the natural world and that we are part of nature. All this is in addition to being truly beautiful.