Some gardens are entirely devoted to attracting wildlife. They tend to be filled with flowering plants, different types of berries and seeds, and native fruit-bearing trees. They often have cool features like small ponds, rock borders, and stumperies, all of which make great habitats for all sorts of animals. When we think about it, these […]
Tag: praying mantis
How the male mantis keeps its head during rough sex
A male Springbok praying mantis looking for a hook up doesn’t have to worry about a female stealing his heart away. There is, however, a very good change she’ll bite his head off, and he knows it. Indeed, 60 percent of sexual encounters between Springboks—one of nearly 2,000 mantis species across the globe—end in males being […]
11 Wondrous Facts About Praying Mantises
From extreme camouflage to sexual cannibalism, these pious-looking carnivores are as exquisite as they are fearsome. Named for their prominent front legs that fold together in a supine gesture suggesting an act of devotion, the praying mantis comes off as supine and soulful. You might think of them as docile things, moving about slowly, nibbling […]
POLL: Should Praying Mantises be used for pest control?
New research documents that mantises worldwide are eating small birds; in the US, invasive mantis species are devouring hummingbirds. If the headline weren’t startling enough, the photos are even worse. There is an order to predators and prey that feels normal – like, birds eat insects. And when the script it flipped it can feel […]
A gallery of Chobe’s feathers
In this post I have chosen to let the images talk for themselves rather than tell stories. This post is a gallery and hope fully the images are enough. This gallery shows you the wonderful variety of birdlife you can see along the Chobe river. As I have mentioned in earlier posts on this trip, […]
Camouflaged!
“The moment one gives close attention to any thing, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself.” Henry Miller
Biologists Surprised by Acrobatic Skills of Juvenile Praying Mantises
A new study published in the journal Current Biology reveals that, unlike other jumping insects, wingless baby mantises don’t spin out of control when airborne. In fact, they both create and control angular momentum at extraordinary speeds to orient their bodies for precise landings. The smaller you are, the harder it is not to spin […]
Camouflage 101…
The art of camouflage is one of the primary defensive weapons in the arsenal of nature’s many and varied creatures. Clearly, this little Praying Mantis was absent for that lesson, and his bright pink coloration stood out like a sore thumb among the cool green tones of the lush rain forrest. Parc National d’Odzala-Kokoua, Republic […]