Stories related to mantis - this mythical legends and mysteries.Many people today do not really know that eating mantis.After rumors about the incredible brutality and aggressiveness of these creatures.Interestingly, though they devour each other?It is time to understand that actually eats beetle mantis.
insect belongs to the order dictyoptera.It has impressive size, the female is twice larger than the male - its trunk reaches 50-75 mm, while the male growth is only 40-50 mm.To understand what the mantis eats enough to look at the structure of his body.In insects, the massive, well-developed forelimbs with sharp spikes.Prehensile legs need to hunt and sharp thorns, like knives stabbing victim.The hind legs are used for locomotion.We conclude that eating mantis is not plant food.These are the real predators that ambush stalk their prey.
Meet the praying mantis can be normal in the tropics and subtropics.In Russia it is distributed on the Black Sea coast and in Crimea, there are species that populate the Far East and South Siberia.In their usual habitat: on the branches of trees and grass - mantises well camouflaged.They blend in with the green leaves, if necessary, take off.Males and females are equally developed wings.But they rarely fly.Wood mantis his entire life may not leave the favorite place.The main condition - that was always food.The fact that eats Mantis mainly tiny insects that are less than half of its own.In this diet of males and females did not differ.At the same time rumors about the voracity of the female during mating confirmed.
There are several hypotheses to explain why the mating ends with the female praying mantis tears off his partner's head.One version - female just hungry and aggressive, and therefore eats his partner.
But there is more original hypothesis, which is based on the fact that hunger females at anything.Some males, reaching his lady, jump on my back and start the pairing, but they are not able to complete it because of the inhibitory impulses coming from the head.For this reason, the female partner simply tears off the head, causing the male finally impregnates his violent partner.
Apparently this fact has led many to think that widespread cannibalism among the praying mantis.This is partly true, although the answer to the question about what the mantis eats quite banal.Food for these dictyoptera - any living organism, not exceeding in size.In the terrarium it can be even meat and small lizards.Too large prey mantis afraid, so it never hunts.
to catch their prey, predatory insects can long pursue it, try to run against his back and clutched his head.Eats caught prey and starts with the head.Adults are very voracious - at one time the male can eat 7-8 cockroaches length of 1 cm. The mantis hungrier, more aggressive will behave and react to every movement.Sated, insects become lethargic and for a while no longer hunt.
