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Praying Mantis (Orchid)

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Hymenopus coronatus
Praying Mantis (Orchid)

Range

They are found in Asia.

Habitat

They live in the rainforest.

Body Traits

They look so much like rainforest flowers that other insects will land on them to get nectar. Praying mantises are the only insect that can turn their head from side to side to search for prey. Their eyes can see anything move up to 60 feet away. They have strong jaws for eating its prey. Their front legs have rows of sharp spines for grabbing prey.

Habits

They live alone. They sit with their front legs held up together so that it looks like praying. They wait without moving and blend in so well that they are almost invisible. When prey comes by, they grab it. They bite the neck of its prey to paralyze it and eat it while it's still alive.

Diet

They eat insects, other mantises, and spiders.

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Reproduction

The female lays up to 400 eggs. She makes a foam cover that hardens into a shell that protects the eggs. When babies hatch, they eat the other babies.

Praying Mantis (Orchid)

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class:  Insecta
Order:  Mantodea
Family: Hymenopodidae
Genus:   Hymenopus
Species: H. coronatus

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