Our very own photographer Sagar Kapoor…… has got a new pet…and that too means that we have got a new member in our group….. J
He found this creature in his garden…and he adopted it….. J he has this one with him for 3 to 4 days…the creature is a praying mantis…..……… J
Facts about PRAYING MANTIS:
The praying mantis is named for its prominent front legs, which are bent and held together at an angle that suggests the position of prayer. The larger group of these insects is more properly called the praying mantis. Mantis refers to the genus mantis, to which only some praying mantis belong.
By any name, these fascinating insects are formidable predators. They have triangular heads poised on a long "neck," or elongated thorax. Mantis can turn their heads 180 degrees to scan their surroundings with two large compound eyes and three other simple eyes located between them.
Typically green or brown and well camouflaged on the plants among which they live, mantis lie in ambush or patiently stalk their quarry. They use their front legs to snare their prey with reflexes so quick that they are difficult to see with the naked eye. Their legs are further equipped with spikes for snaring prey and pinning it in place.
Moths, crickets, grasshoppers, flies, and other insects are usually the unfortunate recipients of unwanted mantis attention. However, the insects will also eat others of their own kind. The most famous example of this is the notorious mating behaviour of the adult female, who sometimes eats her mate just after—or even during—mating. Yet this behaviour seems not to deter males from reproduction.
Females regularly lay hundreds of eggs in a small case, and nymphs hatch looking much like tiny versions of their parents.
The one we have with us is probably a Female youngster….. J
Sexual dimorphism
Looking at external differences between males and females
Antennae:
Males generally have longer and thicker antennae than females do. This can be seen most clearly when the mantis is adult, but as the nymph grows to become an adult it steadily develops the longer antennae. When comparing male and female nymphs you see that the female has thin hair-like antennae while the male has thick antennae. Species of the Empusidae family have males with feathered antennae (‘hairy’ antennae) while the females have smooth antennae.
Body size:
Some species have a very clear difference in body size between males and females, for example the Orchid Mantis and the Budwing Mantis. As the mantis nymphs grow, you can start to notice that some nymphs stay behind in size compared to the others. These are the males. When adult the difference is even more obvious as neither of the sexes will grow anymore.
Body type:
Male praying mantises are generally much more slender than female praying mantises. This can be seen especially well when looking at the thorax. Most species have a pronounced widening in this area, for example the shield of the Dead Leaf Mantis (Deroplatys desiccata), and males have a much smaller widening than the females. This effect becomes more and more pronounced as the mantis nymph becomes older.
Length of the wing:
This difference can only be seen in adult mantises. The wings of a male praying mantis are generally longer than those of the females. The wings of the females reach to the end of their body or even do not reach that far, while the wings of the male are never shorter than the body. The wings of the male generally reach past the end of their body, sticking out a bit from the back. This is because male praying mantises will fly to find a mate, while females generally are to heavy to fly.
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