This past Saturday with the temperature hovering near 95 degrees, I was able to complete all my errands without breaking a sweat, thanks to a very effective air conditioner in my Honda CRV. Pulling into my my driveway, I was reminded by my wilting garden, that a Honda air conditioner can only do so much.  A quick check of my sprinklers revealed they weren’t working, and hadn’t been on all week.  (So much for the 16 year old son as the gardener,... what do they say? “You get what you pay for...”)  Anyways, what does this mean to a gardener, well, a full day of hand watering.  I actually don’t mind this because it gives me a chance to see what’s going on in my garden, as well as providing some much needed  “me” time.  Today, as I sprayed my Hummingbird Sage (Salvia spathacea), up popped a Praying Mantis!  These are my favorite insects!  They have triangular-shaped heads with a compound eye on each side.

Praying mantid on garden phlox. (Photo by Jennifer Baumbach)

The Praying Mantis is the only insect that can turn their head a full 180 degrees.  They are named for their front legs, which are bent and held together as if they are praying.

The one I saw today, was brown, although on other watering-days, (my sprinklers break a lot), I have seen beautiful green mantis.  A mantis is considered a predator that will eat all kinds of insects, good and bad.  Most unfortunate recipients of unwanted mantis attention are moths, crickets, grasshoppers and flies.   I also search for the egg case of the Praying Mantis when I water.  Females regularly lay hundreds of eggs in a small case that is typically attached to woody stems, tree branches, or as in my yard, under the eaves.

Upside-down praying mantid on Toyon. (Photo by Jennifer Baumbach)

Very cool!