The insect shown here is a native insect called a praying mantis. Its name comes from the way it holds its large front legs, as if praying. There are about 20 species of praying mantis native to the U ...

The term ‘praying mantis’ is used to refer to a group of insects that adopt a praying posture when their front legs are at rest. They are all long and narrow, and have a distinctive elongated thorax ...

At this time of year, some nurseries start selling the egg cases of Chinese mantis as a biological control for the garden. These alien-looking insects are praying mantis and are harmless to humans, ...

The snake-tail mantis shows there’s more to these insects than just cannibalism. This male snake-tail mantis, Ameles serpentiscauda, has three simple eyes (ocelli) visible between its antennae, which ...