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Posts Tagged: Mantis religiosa
Meet a Male Mantis in a Patch of Blanket Flowers
So there he is, a praying mantis in a patch of blanket flowers, Gaillardia, in a Vacaville garden. He's a male Mantis religiosa, as slim as a string bean, and scanning his environment. We're accustomed to seeing see the native...
The male Mantis religiosa, investigates his surroundings. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Oh, I think I'll go this way. The male praying mantis changes directions. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The male mantis does an Olympic-style stretch. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Passion Is Where You Find It
Those passion flowers (Passiflora) are insect magnets. One minute you'll see a praying mantis on a blossom. The next minute, a Gulf Fritillary, Agraulis vanillae. And the next morning, the blossom is an arthropod magnet--the beginnings of a spider...
A female praying mantis, Mantis religiosa, crawls over a passionflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A Gulf Fritillary, Agraulis vanillae, lands on a passionflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Notice the spider's thread across the blossom of this passionflower vine? The spider knows where the prey is. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Will a Praying Mantis Eat a Caterpillar?
Will a praying mantis eat a caterpillar? Short answer: Yes. For several days, we've been watching a resident praying mantis, a female Mantis religiosa, hanging out in our patch of Passiflora (passionflower), the host plant of the Gulf...
Gulf Fritillaries flutter over a praying mantis, Mantis religiosa, in a passionflower patch in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Ahh! The praying mantis finds a non-fluttering target, a Gulf Fritillary munching on the leaves of a passionflower vine. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Gotcha! The praying mantis stretches her spiked forelegs to reach the caterpillar. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Will a praying mantis eat a caterpillar? Yes. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Praying mantis rapidly finishing her dinner. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Once Upon a Praying Mantis...
The three men pause in front of the Kate Frey Pollinator Garden at the Sonoma Cornerstone and begin to read the sign. "The Pollinator Garden by Kate Frey," one man reads out loud. "It's brand new, come back soon and watch as it grows. This flower-filled...
A female praying mantis, Mantis religiosa (as identified by praying mantis expert and UC Davis student Lohit Garikipati) is camouflaged in the Kate Frey Pollinator Garden, Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
"Whoa! No pictures!" The female mantis raises her spiked leg. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
"I said no pictures!" The mantis covers her head with a spiked foreleg. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A sign informs visitors what the Kate Frey Pollinator Garden at Sonoma Cornerstone is all about. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A visitor takes images of the Kate Frey Pollinator Garden, Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
How to Find a Praying Mantis
Do you know where your praying mantids are? Water a bush or a plant frequently visited by bees and other pollinators, and if they're in there, they're likely to emerge. Such was the case when a male praying mantis, Mantis religiosa, emerged from our...
A male praying mantis, Mantis religiosa, emerges from a pomegranate bush. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A female praying mantis, Mantis religiosa, strikes a pose. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
