ANIMAL FACTS

Did you know...?

Praying mantis (Rhombodera basalis)

We all know the praying mantis has a fearsome reputation, notorious for the females’ habit of eating the male after mating – and sometimes even during!

But did you know that various species of mantis also prey on hummingbirds? An international study recorded 140 cases of mantis using their super-fast reflexes and spiked legs to pluck the inquisitive birds out of the air.

There are records of predation on birds by 12 mantid species in the genera Coptopteryx, Hierodula, Mantis, Miomantis, Polyspilota, Sphodromantis, Stagmatoptera, Stagmomantis, and Tenodera.

Gruesomely, in several cases, the mantis only ate the birds’ brains.

“Bird Predation By Praying Mantises: A Global Perspective,” The Wilson Journal of Ornithology, 129(2), 331-344, (1 June 2017)