Mantis 20D0037170

Mantis (order Mantodea)

The insect order Mantodea consists of approximately 2,000 species worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats, of which a majority are in the Family Mantidae. Often mistakenly spelled preying mantis (since they are notoriously predatory), they are in fact named for the typical "prayer-like" stance. The word mantis derives from the Greek word mantis for prophet or fortune teller. The closest relatives of mantises are the orders Isoptera (termites) and Blattodea (cockroaches), and these three groups are sometimes ranked together in the superorder Dictyoptera.

Mantises are notable for their hunting abilities. They are exclusively predatory, and their diet usually consists of living insects, including flies and aphids; larger species have been known to prey on small lizards, frogs, birds, snakes and even rodents. Most mantises are ambush predators, waiting for prey to stray too near. The mantis then lashes out at remarkable speed. Prey is caught and held securely with grasping, spiked forelegs; the first thoracic segment, the prothorax, is commonly elongated and flexibly articulated, allowing for greater range of movement of the front limbs while the remainder of the body remains more or less immobile. The articulation of the head is also remarkably flexible, permitting nearly 300 degrees of movement in some species, allowing for a great range of vision (their compound eyes have a large binocular field of vision) without having to move the remainder of the body.

About 20 species are native to the United States, including the common Carolina mantis. Two species (the Chinese Mantis and the European Mantis) were deliberately introduced to serve as pest control for agriculture, and have spread widely in United States and Canada.

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