Identification
• Mantids are slender, up to 6 inches long, with forelegs armed with spines fitted for grasping prey.
• A triangular head has large eyes and connects to a long, necklike first thoracic segment.

Host range
• Mantids feed on many insects, but are nonspecific; they eat whatever they can catch.

Life cycle
• The nymphs are similar to adults but smaller with undeveloped wings (incomplete metamorphosis). Eggs are laid during the fall in a mass covered by a foam like substance. The egg mass hardens and is visible in winter. Eggs hatch in the spring and the young mantids quickly disperse.

Other information
• Young mantids, if kept confined after hatching, will readily eat their siblings.
• This highly visible and voracious predator is often not as effective as its reputation when it is released in the garden. Mantids can also feed on plant pollinators.