Is the praying mantis dangerous or not? Praying Mantises of Crimea
Many people are interested in praying mantises because of their bizarre appearance, incredible ability for mimicry and characteristic posture. When faced with them, people tend to stay away and not touch this mysterious predator. They are especially concerned with the questions: “Does the praying mantis bite or not? And how dangerous is it for humans? Today we will try to understand the behavioral features of this interesting insect.
A little history
Historically, the praying mantis, the photo of which we post in this article, was a popular subject of mythology and folklore. So, in Turkey it was believed that he always points his paws towards Mecca. In Africa he was credited with the ability to resurrect the dead. And in China, his eggs were fried and given to children to cure them of
The Europeans were sure that this insect offered prayers to God and, accordingly, was sacred. But not only thanks to the legends surrounding it, the praying mantis is quite an interesting creature.
Does the praying mantis bite?We study the structural features of insects
The body of the praying mantis consists of three parts: a movable triangular head, abdomen and thorax. This is the only insect capable of turning its head 180° while looking for prey. The female has a heavier belly, and she herself is much larger than the male.
The front legs of the praying mantis are its special feature: they are large, “prayerfully” folded and armed with razor-sharp spines in order to conveniently capture and hold prey.
This insect has a huge appetite (yes, the praying mantis bites, and how!): for food, some use not only insects, but also small rodents, frogs, newts, small snakes and even birds.
There are more than 2,200 species of these voracious robbers, coming in different shapes and sizes. And although their line of behavior is always the same: wait patiently, grab and eat, there are many differences between them both in appearance and taste preferences.
Does the praying mantis bite or not?
Confirmation that the praying mantis can be very dangerous is at least the fact that the female easily bites off the head of her partner immediately after mating. But, fortunately, the likelihood of getting a serious bite from this insect is extremely low. Many people who care for them have never been injured by a praying mantis, as they are generally not aggressive towards humans. You can only be bitten if the insect decides that you are threatening it in some way.
The praying mantis bites: is it dangerous?
By the way, a mantis bite is often less dangerous for humans than the latter’s venom can cause a severe allergic reaction, but this, as a rule, does not happen from an attack by a mantis. You may only feel pain at the moment of the bite, but it will soon go away on its own. Therefore, victims usually do not need medical assistance, except in cases where a person has a personal intolerance to the enzymes contained in the praying mantis. You just need to wash the wound and make sure that it is in normal condition, that is, it does not swell or redden. In case of any condition problems, you should definitely consult a doctor.
- Phylum – Arthropods
- Class – Insects
- Squad – Cockroaches
- Suborder – Praying Mantis (Mantodea)
The famous Swedish scientist and traveler Carl Linnaeus gave the scientific name to the praying mantis: Mantis religiosa. Mantis translated from Greek means “prophet”, “priest”; religiosa – religious. Why did the praying mantis get such a strange name? Look at the photo: the praying mantis looks like one praying. He stands on only four legs out of six, and keeps his forelimbs folded in front of his muzzle, as if he is praying to the Lord
An engraving by the famous Dutch artist Maurits Escher depicts a praying mantis praying for the absolution of a deceased religious dignitary. The praying mantis really looks like a person: it holds food in its “hands”, washes itself after a meal, can turn around (the only one of all insects!) and look intently and vigilantly, just like a person.
But the praying mantis is not as pious as it might seem. In fact, the predatory insect waits in ambush for an unwary victim in order to grab it with lightning speed.
The praying mantis is a typical predator
The praying mantis is a typical example of a predator in wait, or, in other words, an “ambush”. For hours he can sit quietly in a secluded place, waiting for prey. The camouflage coloring allows the mantis to blend in with the vegetation, and even the shape of its body resembles part of a plant. Although it lives among an abundance of greenery, it does not accept plant foods. Moreover, the carnivorous insect eats its prey exclusively alive.
Praying mantises are merciless not only towards other insects smaller in size, which for them are nothing more than a tasty lunch, but also towards their relatives. Anyone who keeps this aggressive creature as a pet needs to know this. Two or more praying mantises are unlikely to live together, especially if one is larger than the other.
In the Middle Ages in Japan, the praying mantis was considered a symbol of courage and cruelty, and even the image of the insect was applied to the hilts of samurai swords. And one of the positions in kung fu repeats the pose of a praying mantis, ready for battle. In addition, in China they believed that the praying mantis had healing powers and could cure some diseases. The ancient Greeks considered the praying mantis a harbinger of spring and a weather predictor; they called it a “prophet” and “soothsayer.” And in some European countries, even today, praying mantises are credited with some kind of magical power. Perhaps this creature, which is an object of superstition, will arouse your interest and you will want to keep it as a treasure?
Mantises: appearance and structural features
Praying mantises are large insects, and females are much larger than males. There are about two thousand species of praying mantises in the world. The common mantis (lat. Mantis religiosa) measures about 6 cm in length. The largest of the mantises, the Chinese mantis, reaches a length of 15 cm.
The body of mantises is elongated, the head is almost triangular, mobile. Large, round, bulging eyes, which point slightly forward and downward, provide it with a much wider field of vision than a human. And thanks to its extremely flexible neck, the praying mantis can turn its head so that it will notice any creature approaching it from behind. The mouth is well developed and equipped with biting jaws or a sucking proboscis.
Among the praying mantises there are both winged and wingless ones. In insects equipped with wings, both pairs of wings are well developed. The front wings are narrower than the hind wings and denser. When at rest, the wide membranous hind wings are folded like a fan and covered with elytra. It must be said that the wings are for their intended purpose, i.e. for flight, the praying mantis rarely uses it. Rather, he needs them to intimidate prey, as well as enemies.
The body structure of the praying mantis indicates that the insect is well adapted to a predatory lifestyle. The abdomen is ten-segmented, soft and flattened, with numerous long outgrowths - cerci (serve as olfactory organs). The long thigh is seated along the lower edge with three rows of strong spines. The lower edge of the tibia also has 3 rows of pronounced spines. The thigh and lower leg fold together to form a powerful grasping apparatus that acts like scissors.
Mantis - master of camouflage
Some types of mantises are green in color, so they are difficult to notice among the grass and foliage, while others can have a pinkish tint, as a result they merge with flower petals. And, for example, the Indian mantis has a brown tint and on the ground looks like just a fallen leaf.
The praying mantis's body shape and various camouflage colors allow the insect to blend in with plants, making it virtually invisible to both potential victims and enemies. The praying mantis itself can also become a victim of larger predators (birds, lizards). To protect itself from enemies, the praying mantis has a number of protective devices.
Thus, the camouflage color makes the praying mantis hidden in the grass almost invisible. Gives the insect movement. Under normal circumstances, the praying mantis moves very slowly, but when in danger it can quickly crawl to cover. When there is a clear threat, the insect visually increases the area of its body, opening its wings, and begins to sway from side to side, trying with all its might to scare off the enemy. The insect tries to hit the enemy with its front legs with sharp spines.
This is not surprising, because the insect is very aggressive and even attacks its relatives. Even during mating, the female praying mantis is known to eat the male. In this regard, the question arises, what differences does the praying mantis insect have, why is this representative of arthropod dangerous and useful for humans? Does its size matter? After all, if we take flies and mosquitoes as an example, it becomes clear that even a tiny creature can cause serious harm to health. Thus, mosquitoes spread malaria and other serious diseases. Praying mantises are not small by insect standards. Different species reach from four to nine centimeters in length! Add to this the ability to camouflage and the habits of a predator - there is something to worry about.
Why does a female praying mantis eat the male during mating??
The breeding season for praying mantises occurs from August to September. Males go in search of dangerous girlfriends, but family happiness is not expected for predatory insects. The female eats the male directly during mating, starting from the head. After all, the nerve nodes on the abdomen are responsible for the sexual process. Experts have studied this behavior of praying mantises.
In the early stages of research into the biology of these insects, scientists were of the opinion that the female behaved in such a way as to increase the amount of sperm she received from the agonizing male mantis.
Modern entomologists have come to the conclusion that this version is erroneous. After careful research, it became clear that the female praying mantis devours the male only in order to obtain an additional source of proteins for the development of eggs.
Why is it believed that the female praying mantis necessarily eats the male during mating? This does not always happen. It is known that especially cautious males are able to complete their mission and quickly get out of the sight of their predatory friend.
Can a praying mantis bite a person??
Young praying mantises behave more modestly than adults, do not attack large prey and do not even try to bite a person. The insects do not pose a serious threat, but they can injure with their claws. An adult can easily survive such a nuisance, but it is better to protect a small child from meeting an aggressive praying mantis. The predator even hunts small birds and mammals if they were careless to disturb his peace.
Can a praying mantis bite an adult when it encounters it? Of course, such a possibility exists. However, children are eager to explore the world around them and have a greater chance of encountering dangerous insects. It is better to keep very young children away from this creature to prevent pain. Don't frighten kids too much with the praying mantis. In the forest or steppe there are much more dangerous creatures: poisonous snakes, stinging wasps and infection-carrying rodents.
Benefits of the praying mantis
Praying mantises are widely used by gardeners to control pests. Because of their omnivorous nature, they quickly deal with all the inhabitants of the garden or garden, saving plants and vegetables from death. These insects have become faithful allies of humans in the agricultural sector. However, the main advantage of praying mantises is also its disadvantage. The fact is that along with pests, beneficial insects, such as bees, also die in their paws.
The insect mantis, what makes it dangerous and useful for humans is its aggressive gluttony. It bites furiously, fighting all living creatures, it is useful as an entomophage, destroying garden pests. In any case, the insect cannot but attract the attention of both scientists and ordinary people.
There are two species of praying mantises in Crimea. The common praying mantis is the largest of them. The length of the male reaches 40-50 cm, the female mantis is even larger: from 48 to 75 cm. The color of this insect can vary from light green to brown. The saturation and tonality of the shade depends on what vegetation the mantis feeds in the place where it lives.
Does the Crimean mantis bite?
The question that worries a person who has met a praying mantis is the following: why is a praying mantis dangerous? Does it bite or not, and if so, is its bite poisonous?
So, the praying mantis bites. This is due to his constant feeling of hunger. The insect is in continuous search for food. This is a predator that attacks its prey unexpectedly, lying in wait for it in ambush. The peculiarity of the praying mantis is its head, which can rotate 180 degrees.
When attacking a victim, the praying mantis covers it with its paws. A resourceful predator spends only a split second on an attack, which is why the victim has no opportunity to avoid the attack. This applies to insects, but what about humans?
Is praying mantis vinegar dangerous for humans?
The belief that praying mantises bite is due to the aggressive behavior of these insects. They are indeed very warlike and love to fight for any reason or without it at all. Just like the black widow female Crimean mantis eats her partner after mating. She can do this, because she is much larger than the male.
On a note: Another quality of the praying mantis is its courage. It can attack not only insects, but also rodents and even small birds. By the way, in a battle, these six-legged animals often win.
Is the praying mantis dangerous to humans? The question is complex. He is quite capable of biting through the skin of a child. A praying mantis can bite through the delicate skin of an adult in the face and neck area. You can see what tenacious legs with spikes he has in this video:
Precautionary measures
As mentioned above, the praying mantis will not attack you first unless you disturb it. Never try to catch an insect unless you know how to do it correctly. To catch a six-legged fish without health consequences, you need to have excellent coordination and knowledge of how to do it correctly. The praying mantis will defend itself with all its might, trying to bite and scratch its opponent with its sharp claws.
- Warn your children not to touch the praying mantis because it bites painfully and can cause injury.
- When going for a walk in nature, look around the place. The praying mantis never attacks a person first, but it can begin to defend itself in case of danger.
- If you are bitten by a praying mantis, you do not need to take any special action. Just treat the area with any antiseptic. Fortunately, praying mantises are not poisonous and when they bite, they do not inject their poison into the skin.
The Crimean mantis is not just an insect, it is a representative of its genus, an adornment of nature in which it performs its function.
Do praying mantises bite?
A freckled little fellow with a pink bow on the top of her head asks me.
And here comes a question that takes second place in terms of frequency of occurrence among the inquisitive population of the city on the Neva. However, I don’t think that the reason is in this river. In other places, they ask the same thing.
Of course, when asking me whether praying mantises bite, people wanted to know, “Is it possible to pick up a praying mantis?” People wanted to get to know these almost fabulous creatures better. Get to know each other better than just look...
But it is also impossible to give a simple answer to this question.
It depends on how you take it. And which praying mantis to take, and at what period of development.
First, if you want to handle a praying mantis, keep in mind that this is stressful for him. Any capture of the praying mantis's body will result in damage to the sensitive hairs-sensilla, which are the sense organs of this animal. The body of the praying mantis, like other insects, consists of three main sections - the head, thorax and abdomen. In mantises, these sections are connected to each other in such a way that the insect can turn to “face” you without turning at all using its legs. The chest itself, which also consists of three sections in insects, is articulated movably. We are talking about the articulation of the elongated anterior and short, mid-chest. The mantis' head is generally so flexible that it can rotate it 180 degrees. And therefore, it will not be possible to pick up a praying mantis, like, for example, a beetle, by grasping the elytra with your fingers. When frightened, the mantis will unfold its prothorax and “tug” your hand with its trap legs. It won’t be able to cause any significant damage, but most likely you will be afraid that the praying mantis may end up falling to the earth’s surface. There is another way to communicate with this animal. Try just placing the praying mantis on your hand without trying to fix it with your fingers. Place your palm and let the praying mantis climb onto it. The animal, if you do not try to deprive it of its freedom, quickly calms down and you can communicate with it. Adult empusas and some other mantises, which in nature mimic leaves and branches of plants, react calmly when placed on the hand. The females of these insects will not try to escape or fly away. The larvae of all mantises are quite nervous; you should not touch them at all. They are more mobile than adults (adults). They can jump and are easy to lose in a room, especially on the street. They are, after all, small in size. You can also place praying mantises from the family of common mantises (Mantidae) on your hand, but among them there are very nervous individuals. You should not handle adult female tree mantises, at least if you do not have sufficient experience in keeping these animals. The female tree mantis, after she begins to fatten up in preparation for egg-laying, is constantly hungry and may try to lightly chew your finger, which smells delicious. However, such behavior is rather an exception to the rule than the rule.
It is also interesting to communicate with mantises because eye contact with these insects is possible. You will immediately feel when this creature is looking at you. This has been tested by many people and always causes a feeling of surprise. Well, be it a “higher” animal. Cat or dog. But it's an insect! But how he looks! In this gaze of the praying mantis, you can physically feel that he, too, is showing us, clearly not only gastronomic interest.
Mantises, especially empusas, are very sociable. We humans don’t think much about the fact that when communicating with each other, we use not one, but several languages at the same time. In addition to the voice, gestures, facial expressions, postures and this is only on the surface. Living in my cage as a group, the empusas actively communicate and also have more than one way of communication. Of course, they cannot communicate by voice. The only sound that a praying mantis can make intentionally is a rustling sound using its wings. In addition to the language of smells, common in the world of insects, my charges used the language of vibrations and postures. Mantises are masters of poses. This was noticed by all the animal photographers who dealt with them. They can dance, move, and transmit information. This “body conversation” is indeed similar, if not to dance, then to pantomime.
The violin mantis received the nickname “dancing mantis” for a reason. His arsenal includes squats, abdominal and chest movements. And simple swaying from side to side apparently means something like our “Hello.” We also wave our hand as a sign of greeting, shaking our palm from side to side.
But the forelimbs, unlike us, as I noticed, adult empusas and other mantises do not use for greetings, but only for warning and threat. This could be: false attacks, which means go away. And those placed wide apart mean (“the pose of a boastful fisherman,” as I call it, “and yesterday I caught such a fish”) - “I’m big and strong, you can’t handle me, Better go your own way." As a last resort, if that doesn't work, there might be a kick with the back of the front legs or even a kick with the spikes without attempting a tackle. If the mantis feels its physical superiority, then instead of a threatening pose, it can immediately take a fighting stance, preparing for a real battle to the death. The very pose of threat in mantises precisely means that the mantis is not at all ready for a fight and its only hope is that it will still be left alone if it manages to scare the enemy with its open wings and bright spots.
Mantises, as predatory animals, have a big problem that is associated with the peculiarities of their vision and behavior. There are situations when two praying mantises must come to an agreement. This situation occurs when an adult female praying mantis is visited by a male. What if praying mantises belong to a group that categorically does not accept or tolerate any presence of individuals of its own species? After all, the female is stronger than the male and usually sees in him only her lunch or dinner. The male, as a rule, can determine whether the female is ready to accept him as a “wife” or whether she is aggressive. More than once I have had the opportunity to observe how a pair of praying mantises become acquainted. Immediately after the male and female common tree mantis found themselves in the same cage, both animals, having discovered the presence of each other, froze. After this, a strange staring game began. The entire world around them, for this couple, ceased to exist. I deliberately tried to disrupt this idyll by slipping the praying mantises a fly, a cricket, or a cockroach. All in vain. Then I tried to just push the male and female slightly. In general, no reaction! Once, I even tried to forcibly separate the male from the female at that moment. However, the male tried to actively resist this. It looked very strange, because I was used to the fact that males of real mantises are shy and not aggressive at all, let alone females.
I had the impression that some kind of “conversation” was going on between the male and female, which occupied their entire attention. The antennas were directed towards each other and vibrated intensely, with high frequency. Such “conversations” varied in length. Especially “chatty” couples could remain in a stupor for up to three and a half hours. The end of the negotiations was indicated by a certain behavior of the female. She either began to creep up to the male, slowly and carefully rearranging her walking legs. She moved slowly. At a speed of only a few centimeters per minute. But the male reacted to this behavior immediately. He turned around and moved as far as possible from his would-be bride. It was obvious to him that there would be no wedding. In the cage, the male was doomed, if he or the female, in this case, was not removed, the death of the gentleman was inevitable. The female will eventually catch him in the limited space of the cage and eat him. In another case, when the negotiations were successful, the female simply indifferently turned away from the male, letting him know that she was allowing herself to be approached. And then the male, being very careful and trying to stay behind the female, began to approach her. From a distance of 10-15 centimeters, the groom usually made a jump and, using his wings, landed on the back of the female. Here, for the male, the most dangerous and crucial moment began. After all, the chosen one could change her mind about marrying him. Such cases also happened. I was able to see an interesting detail. If the female suddenly began to make attempts to throw off the male, he would hold on tightly to her wings with his walking legs, and then, with the claws of his forelimbs, would rhythmically tap something on the elytra of his friend. After which, she calmed down. This, in fact, was where communication ended for these animals.
The fact that insects can transmit information and receive it using a special alphabet implemented using antennas has been known for a long time. But man has never been able to decipher this language. Even in such the most studied group of insects as the Hymenoptera (this includes bees, wasps, bumblebees, ants). And yet, some of the movements that my charges made with the help of antennas were intuitive. If the antennae are thrown back, this means that the mantis is scared and is about to attack. If the antennae are pointed forward and motionless, this means that the mantis is studying the situation in the hope of detecting prey. When the mantis is confused and does not know how to feel about what is happening, it lowers its antennae low in front of itself, crossing them with each other. It seems at this moment that the praying mantis simply crossed himself...
But the larvae of praying mantises, nymphs*, have their own characteristics of social behavior.
* - It was agreed upon to call them this, like the larvae of all other insects with incomplete metamorphosis (they lack the pupal phase, the prepupa immediately moults into an adult).
Having come face to face with their peers, they often organize a real sports competition for the right to occupy a microstation, be it a stem, a section of bark or a leaf. The larvae, standing opposite each other, first begin to do strange dance steps with their front legs, and then move on to real modern dances. Remaining completely motionless, with their heads bowed low, they make successive circular movements with their combat legs - left-right, left-right. The limbs themselves tremble and vibrate. Moreover, the frequency of vibration increases over time. The losing individual runs away. I would venture to suggest that the winner is the one who can demonstrate the highest frequency and, therefore, the highest speed of muscle reaction. The loser, without further objection, leaves the disputed area. This is only at the human Olympiad, second place is an honor, in the life of nature, there is no second place.