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Praying Mantis
| Article
# : |
13476 |
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Section : |
NATURAL SCIENCE
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| Issue
Date : |
9 / 1987 |
921 Words |
| Author
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Dwight G. Smith
Dwight G. Smith is professor and chairman of the biology
department at Southern Connecticut State University in New
Haven. His latest book, Plants, was released this summer by
Pearson Publishing Company of Boston. |
In roadside brambles and scrub thickets a creature with a visage as fearsome as the aliens of science fiction and as familiar as the dragons of legend patiently awaits its next victim. Praying mantises, or mantids, have excited curiosity and stimulated beliefs and superstitions for centuries. The Greek thought that mantids were soothsayers or diviners able to foretell the future. Muslims considered them fellow worshipers of Allah that prayed with their faces toward Mecca. Many Africans worshiped mantids as gods or spirits, and considered their presence a sign of good fortune. Other peoples believed that mantids would point the way home to lost children.
The range of superstitions accorded to this insect is evident in names such as the German Gottesanberin, which suggests their mystical powers; "devil's horse," because of their defensive rearing posture; and "mule killer," from the bizarre notion that their saliva could kill a mule. Their common name, mantis, is derived from a Greek word meaning prophet or seer, while the scientific name Mantis religiosa, bestowed on them by the Swedish biologist Carolus Linnaeus, refers to the "praying" posture these animals assume when hunting.
Technically, mantids are classified in the grasshopper order of insects called Orthoptera. This group includes such oddities as walkingsticks, crickets, and katydids as well as one of our earliest insect companions and pests, the cockroach. Although seemingly dissimilar, all of these insects are related by having narrow, leathery forewings and large, fan-shaped hind wings which are neatly folded back on the body when not in use.
There are about 2,000 species of mantids worldwide, with most found in tropical regions. Twenty species occur in North America, including two species unintentionally introduced from Asia and one from Europe. The alien species probably arrived around the turn of the century as egg cases attached to imported shrubs and plants. All three are now well established, especially the large Chinese Mantis and the European Mantis in the Northeast.
Almost all mantids are easily identified by their relatively large size and grotesque body. In actuality, the mantid's oddly shaped body is molded to suit its role as a predator. Like most adult insects, mantids have three pairs of legs and a body comprised of three distinct segments: head, neck, and abdomen. The mantid's most unique feature is its forelegs, which are highly modified grappling devices equipped with long, sharp spines and grooves suited for snaring and holding struggling
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