Praying Mantis Life Cycle Lessons from My Garden
I least expected to get Praying Mantis Life Cycle Lessons from my balcony garden. My tiny balcony garden is home to many species. Most of them are pests destroying my fruits of hard work in my balcony garden. Some of my spare time goes into tending the plants and watering them. However I found one helping hand from praying mantis!
Praying Mantis I read up on it and to my surprise praying mantis is more a friend of garden and not a foe. They eat aphids, grass hoppers, mosquito larvae, baby caterpillars and other soft-bodied insects. Some aggressive ones, bigger in size, the carnivorous mantises are known to devour little birds like humming birds.
Praying Mantis Laying Eggs in my Balcony Garden
And this incident happened a few months back.
We saw this pregnant Praying Mantis perched on the wall so gracefully. All of us crowded around her, but she didn’t budge from that place or pose. Downloading the shots we noticed the bulge, it was quite unusual from the other pictures of Praying Mantis we saw in our Google search. My daughters were confident it was going to lay eggs.
We have never seen praying mantis laying eggs before. We didn’t even know what is the life cycle of praying mantis? When does the praying mantis egg hatch? So this was exciting.
Female praying mantis after mating has this kind of swollen belly like in the picture below. It was obvious she was going to lay eggs soon.
In some cultures, a praying mantis can be a sign of good luck or fortune. For example: Native Americans believe the insect came before the creation of man and Earth. The bugs represent wealth, success, large families and the cycle of life.
Not sure whether this sighting will bring me luck, but it surely did give my daughters a learning experience in nature.
Praying Mantis Life Cycle
Next day morning my daughters rushed to see whether the Praying Mantis was still there. It. Was. There. Out came the camera and click, click, click they went. They downloaded immediately to see if the shots came out well, they didn’t want to take any chance. The shots came out well. One look at the Praying Mantis’s face we decided not to disturb her at her most private moment.
It was one whole sack of eggs. The egg case of praying mantis is called the ootheca.
Do you know the heads of praying mantis are flexible? Yes, permitting 300 degrees of movement, allowing a great range of vision.
The Praying Mantis was still laying eggs in to the egg case. We kept a watch on her from a distance. After her job was done, she flew off without turning back to see her egg case even once.
After that day it was a patient ‘wait and observe’ for the next few weeks. Lot of reading and study went on: how long does it take for the babies to come popping out of the egg case, ootheca? What if they are at school then? I was given the responsibility of guarding it.
Then one day when the kids were at school, almost six weeks later, I noticed three tiny ones moving around. OMG! They have hatched! Often their first meal is one of their siblings, I had read!
At least twenty five to thirty babies are expected from one ootheca. Have the other nymphs escaped or did they get eaten up? I was imagining how disappointed the kids would be to know the babies hatched in their absence. Rushed for my camera, placed one baby praying mantis in my palm and here is one precious shot.
Praying mantis egg case.
Those baby mantids, the nymphs that survive eat leafhoppers, aphids or small flies. It was a great learning experience to know what are the Praying Mantis life cycle stages.
Egg stage: Praying mantises begin their lives as eggs, which are laid by the female in a frothy mass called an ootheca. The female dies soon after egg laying they usually die. The ootheca hardens soon and protects the eggs from predators and harsh weather.
Nymph stage: Once the eggs hatch, the young praying mantises emerge as nymphs. At this stage, they are small and vulnerable and undergo several molts as they grow larger. They shed their skin many times to reveal a new larger skin underneath. This is called moulting.
Adult stage: After completing the nymph stage, the praying mantis reaches adulthood. At this stage, they have fully developed wings and reproductive organs and are capable of mating and reproducing. Adult mantises can vary in size and color depending on the species.
Praying Mantis life cycle timeline
Egg stage typically lasts 3 to 6 weeks
Nymph stage lasts the next 4 to 8 weeks
Adult stage lasts several months. The female outlives the male.
praying mantis nymph
Praying Mantis Life Cycle FAQ section
What is the life cycle of a praying mantis?
Praying mantises only have one life cycle a year. A praying mantis goes through three main stages in its life cycle: egg, nymph, and adult. The praying mantis nymph stage is divided into several smaller stages, during which the mantis molts and grows larger.
What month do praying mantis lay eggs?
Praying mantis egg laying occurs right after mating in late September through early October.
How long does it take for a praying mantis egg to hatch?
Praying mantis eggs typically hatch in 3 to 6 weeks, depending on environmental conditions such as temperature and humidity.
What do praying mantis nymphs eat?
Praying mantis nymphs are carnivorous and primarily feed on small insects and other arthropods.
Are praying mantises beneficial to garden?
Yes, praying mantises are considered beneficial insects as they help control pest populations by eating other insects that can damage plants. However, they may also eat beneficial insects, so it’s important to use them in moderation and not rely solely on mantises for pest control.
Can praying mantises fly?
Yes, praying mantises are capable of flight. They primarily use their wings to glide short distances or to make controlled descents from high perches and not large distances.
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Even at home, it’s shoot at sight…?!!!!
Wonderful pictures and good to see the baby Praying Mantis amidst the crystal clear life-line, heart-line and such other lines :)))
wonderful..Ive seen them a couple of times in my balcony too and they have disappeared before I took the camera out
How you captured such a delicate creature and at its most tender moments…amazing! To enlarge the photos…they are inspiring..
Oh how amazing!
How wonderful for the children to have such a good practical lesson on nature. Wonderful post and great photos.
Great post!
But how exciting to see the egg laying! I have seen the itty bitty babies before but never knew where they came from just discovered them. They are such cute babies! I totally enjoyed your post. 🙂
Oh my gosh – this is one of the coolest stories (and series of photos) ever! I enjoyed this SO much!!!
Hi Indrani! New Year, Old Troubles… No, I’m not talking about the frosty weather, just the office… Another hectic week! 😉
Amazing post! But I’m absolutely delightes with the Ranakpur Jain Temple post! Stunning! Another one to add to my long list…
Thanks for your comments at Blogtrotter, now with new posts on Delhi! Enjoy and have a great week!
Good u thought about devoting a post to this wonderful creature. Like many kids, during my childhood I was fascinated by them. I still remember how my father introduced me to this when one strayed into our house.
Remarkable series. I have had a sense once of being observed by a dragonfly swivelling its head – attempting to understand the large mass (me) which had occluded the sky.
OMG! I guess you can find adventure in your garden balcony, if you only looked closely enough.
Great pictures!
Happy you shared in the process. Rare captures, I think
Way to go these are fabulous
Precious special moments and wonderful photography.
Great photographs.
I’ve seen lots of praying mantis’s … but this is the first time I’ve seen the babies.
Super cool! I never seen a baby mantis or an egg sac like that before… I really enjoyed this post very much!!
~Michele~
Mountain Retreat
This was very special for you to post a baby PM? wow!
WOW!
we get a mantis now and then but these shots are amazing
and the baby in your hand! how sweet
This is a truly amazing series of photographs. I am jealous!
great photos and story line…too many lines on your palm..you worry a lot!!
Awesome photos and a really interesting post.
How awesome that you were able to catch all of this on camera. I love these photos, beautiful work.
Cece
This is the most informative post about the praying mantis sofar. Thanks for sharing.
What fantastic close-ups of these amazing critters!
~Angie
http://www.thearthurclanphotos.blogspot.com
how very cool and educational Sandy
This is an outstanding photo series. I love the last one with the tiny creature in the palm of your hand. Wow!
I have never, ever seen a little baby mantis…this is an incredible shot!
So glad to have been able to share this moment with you. Excellent photography
incredible set of pics!!!
super captures!!
Mindboggling shots….thanks for sharing these tiny species with us…
Wow those are some precious moments! Beautiful to be so close to nature.
Well, that is flat-out the most incredible series of “bug” post and photos I’ve ever seen! And thanks for the explanation and all the info. Terrific post!!! Thank you!
We have a few praying mantis in our area, but I have never seen one lay eggs. Thanks for the cool post!
An Arkie’s Musings
This is a brilliant post. You’ve captured the full process beautifully. Top notch photography and nature watching.
These are exceptional photos. How nice to share this all with your daughter. I also love to watch a preying mantis on a leaf. I often find them in my garden. Your world also looks fascinating. I know so little about India, although many South African originally hail from that country!
The last shot is great!
Some superlative captures !!!
I have seen several posts of Mantis in the last year but this is the best.
They seem to have a world wide range which much be the mark of an ultra-successful creature.
Thanks for this, especially the last shot.
What awesome captures!
So tiny the babies were.