- Joined
- Apr 11, 2007
- Messages
- 5,438
So last week I was seeing this big mantis lurking around the smoking area at my workplace. I work with a bunch of "kill-em-all" truck drivin, sh!+-kickin rednecks so I figured she should be moved to a location with less squish potential. She flew away before I could grab her on my first attempt but the guy I share an office with caught her the next day and delivered her unto the lush, verdant promised land that is the giant bush next to our office.
The very next day this is what we saw there...
They did that ALL DAY LONG. We humans could learn a thing or two from these bugs...
Over the weekend she laid an oothecae in the bush. Both specimens are still occupying the same bush but are not staying near each other. It seems like the male (lighter green, that's the male right?) is guarding the ooth. He hasn't been more than 6 inches away from that thing all week.
Is this something they usually do? I've never heard of mantids guarding eggs and the oothecae seems pretty rugged to me. Who'd want to eat that?
The very next day this is what we saw there...
They did that ALL DAY LONG. We humans could learn a thing or two from these bugs...
Over the weekend she laid an oothecae in the bush. Both specimens are still occupying the same bush but are not staying near each other. It seems like the male (lighter green, that's the male right?) is guarding the ooth. He hasn't been more than 6 inches away from that thing all week.
Is this something they usually do? I've never heard of mantids guarding eggs and the oothecae seems pretty rugged to me. Who'd want to eat that?
