Insect Identification- Praying Mantis

October 13, 2024 | Protect Our Freedom

[ProtectOurFreedom]

I found several good sites about the Mantis species, but nothing about the yellow coloration. Are any FReepers amateur entomologists? What have we got here?

[abigkahuna]

Had one up here near the front door—same color—Gold Country Butte County...

[aMorePerfectUnion]

They change color.

[DoodleBob]

[Deaf Smith]

Critter has Jaundice?

[ProtectOurFreedom]

This one looks immature. Do they change color and body shape as they age?

The mantis undergoes an incomplete metamorphosis—the young and adult mantises look almost entirely the same.

The nymph stage of a praying mantis is highly susceptible to potential predators. That is why most nymphs just couldn’t reach adulthood. They will shed their exoskeletons five to six times before attaining adulthood. However young the mantis may be, it will look exactly like an adult mantis except for the fact that nymphs do not have a strong defense.

The adult mantis molts numerous times before attaining its full size. They starve hours before they molt and mantises become highly vulnerable to predators at the time of molting because the molting continues for few hours. But when the molting completes successfully the mantis will resume its hunting activities and turn out to be stronger and more active than before.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Thanks. Sure is a weird (and pretty) color. Plus gorgeous pattern on the wings.

I’ve always seen green ones in the garden.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

LOL...of course!

[pnut22]

When I was a young girl my father told me it was against the law to harm a mantis. I loved catching them and putting them in a jar and that would usually have a bad outcome. I would hide the evidence!

If I recall correctly females were green and larger than the brown males.

[chuck allen]

Did you know the Praying Mantis will kill Hummingbirds. They climb up on Hummingbird feeders, wait for a bird to come and then snatch it out of the air. Lots of videos on YouTube that will show this. It’s amazing to see. Circle of life stuff.

[gundog]

Brown or green, around here...coastal Oregon.

[Red Badger]

Must be a Chinese mantis.........

[HerrBlucher]

The Praying mantis is the coolest insect ever, i am just glad it is not as big as a horse or a cow.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Wow. Now what does the mantis do with that kill?

[Vendome]

Yep

I grew up in East San Jose and they were there too

And bats

[The_Media_never_lie]

How do you know it was praying; could have been observing a moment of silence!

[HerrBlucher]

Hummingbird Stew.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

From what I was reading, the Mantis can’t hear but is very good at detecting vibrations and detecting bat echoes. Sounds like the bat is one of their big predators.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

It’s a Trump Mantis...it’s praying for the win.

[NEMDF]

Saw a bright green one a couple weeks ago in central Iowa.