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A praying mantis hangs out on a brugmansias at Chaos.

A praying mantis hangs out on a brugmansias at Chaos.

I had noticed my brugmansias, after shedding most of their early summer leaves and somewhat ragged with caterpillar munching and assorted bug holes, were now clad in nearly pristine new duds. This morning, I discovered a ninja guard dog in the shape of a Carolina praying mantis was helping to keep them that way.

He cocked his head at me when I took his picture, with no intention of moving and showing no signs of fear when I poked my cellphone in his triangular face. I had an uneasy feeling he was sizing me up for lunch as he tracked my movements, feelers twitching, but upon closer inspection of the photo I snapped, he actually appeared to be guarding a beetle possibly intended for a snack, and was more likely wondering if he was going to have to fight me for it.

I say “he” because though he still had his head, meaning he was either very fast or not mated yet, his body was slim and his wings were long, reaching past his abdomen. A female would be fatter, pregnant this time of year, with short wings.

I knew he was a native Carolina mantis rather than the Chinese type by his elegant, graceful style and his size — less than 3 inches long. Chinese mantises have a stripe between their eyes and may reach 5 inches long, possibly closer to 6 in an adult female. Males are considerably smaller and can be confused with similar European mantises, also commonly found in North America.

Not sticking to a mere insect diet (which includes large butterflies and spiders), the larger Chinese mantises also prey on tree frogs, can sometimes be found lurking on a hummingbird feeder looking for an easy meal and have been known to eat nestlings.

Introduced to North America for pest control starting sometime in the 1800s, European and Chinese mantids continue to be sold in garden centers as “biological, environmentally safe” in spite of being known to be invasive and not friendly to valued inhabitants of our native environment. All mantids are carnivores, deadly efficient killers.

Last fall, a female Carolina mantis hung out near a spiderweb over the basement door, seemingly companionably as neither one attempted to eat the other. The mantis probably snatched bits from the spider’s web while she was occupied with other catches.

I found several mantis oothecas (egg cases) on the deck this spring, camouflaged against and under stones on the house wall, not far from her basement door hangout (females don’t attempt to fly much with their short wings and heavy bodies). I missed seeing any tiny, cute baby mantises when they hatched in spring, but have spotted several adults out and about this summer.

Even though the young are cannibalistic and also easy prey for birds or other predators, out of 50 to 100 eggs per case, a considerable number should have survived and be ninja-hunting Chaos. Adults don’t live through winters, so we’re being careful not to destroy egg cases as we do cleanup and needed repair of our old rock house walls this fall.

Carolina mantis egg cases are tan rounded ovals about half an inch long. They’re almost like a fossilized trilobite, and stuck flat to a hard surface can even easily be mistaken for a fossil. Sometimes they’re wrapped completely around a twig, camouflaged and barely noticeable.

European oothecas are similar, but darker in color. Chinese mantis egg cases resemble a blob of spray foam insulation stuck to a sturdy stem or twig, usually out in the middle of the garden somewhere. In defense of our smaller native mantises, tree frogs, swallowtail and monarch butterflies, I dispose of Chinese oothecas (containing 200 to 400 eggs) if I find them, squashing them thoroughly.

Mantises don’t sting, and seldom bite (pinch) unless in self-defense; the only hurt would probably be one’s feelings. They have been known upon occasion to use their strong, grasping front legs to box an intruding finger stuck rudely in their faces. Our cats would do the same, and even most humans I know.

There are 2,400 species of praying mantids worldwide. Only 17 species (give or take a couple) are found in North America, at least six of which are introduced. Most resemble, at least superficially, familiar common garden species and are often hard to tell apart, except for a Texas mantis, which might be mistaken for a scorpion with an upturned abdomen.

Others found in South America, Africa and other places include beautiful pink and white orchid mantises native to tropical Malaysian rainforests, with close mimicry to flowers in which they hide to capture insect prey; moss mantises; flower mantises from sub-Sahara regions; and dragon mantises from Brazil.

Dead-leaf and ghost mantises camouflaged as crumpled leaves are native to Africa and South America, and a slew of others (domestically bred) are often sold as pets along with tarantulas, hissing cockroaches and other exotic insects for those who want something different.

I can’t say I wouldn’t be tempted, even after learning that mantises are related to the cockroach family, which might be a bit of an “ew” factor. They also only live for a year at max, or just a few weeks past adulthood, and can’t be domesticated. Some species reportedly are docile and one will happily walk across fingers and hands — unless it got annoyed, when it would likely use its wings to escape.

Somewhere in the garden is a praying mantis sculpted of rusty wire I bought at an art market several years ago. It probably cost about as much as an exotic live one ($25-$30) and will never die or need fed. It’s assuredly the only one I’ll ever keep. I’ll be content to enjoy the occasional companionship of wild mantises, and stick to cats as pets.

Sandy and Jim Parrill garden at Chaos, our acre of the Ozarks in Joplin, Missouri. Sandy is a lifelong gardener, Missouri Master Gardener and winner of The Missouri Writers Guild 2018 first place award for Best Newspaper Column. Jim is a former garden center owner and landscaper; both are past members of the Missouri Landscape and Nursery Association. Email them at sandraparrill@sbcglobal.net and follow their Facebook page, A Parrillel Universe of Wonderful Things.

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