mantids
Triangle-headed hunters
Mantids are predatory insects of the family Mantidae, commonly called praying mantises for their distinctive posture—forelegs raised and folded as if in prayer.
These forelegs snap forward to seize prey with remarkable speed.
Mantids are ambush hunters, often camouflaged to resemble leaves or flowers.
A mantid waited motionless on the stem until a fly landed nearby.
Surprise strike from concealment
- carnivoreCreature eating only animals
- preyAnimal being hunted
- hunterPursuer of prey
- strikeForceful impact or stoppage
pounce · capture · cannibalism · stalking · voracious · lethal · feeding · insects
Addressing a deity
- prayerAddress to deity
- meditationFocused attention practice
- contemplationSustained reflective attention
- stillnessComplete lack of motion
patience · mindfulness · Shaolin · divination · omen · spiritual · prophetic · reverence
Animal's anterior limbs
- raptorialGrasping prey by nature
- thoraxCentral body cavity
- abdomenTorso's lower cavity
- antennaeSensory appendages on insects
exoskeleton · mandibles · tarsus · ovipositor · spiracles · wings · femur · tibia
Adaptive resemblance to another
- crypticObscure in meaning
- disguiseIdentity-concealing alteration
- concealmentAct of hiding something
- blendCombine into mixture
coloration · bark · flower · twig · adaptation · stealth · deception · survival
Jointed-limb invertebrate phylum
- hexapodSix-legged arthropod
- invertebrateAnimal sans backbone
- taxonomyScience of categorical arrangement
- speciesFinest taxonomic rank
genus · nymph · instar · molting · metamorphosis · morphology · phylogeny · systematics
ambush
Surprise strike from concealment
strike · pounce · capture · cannibalism · stalking · voracious · lethal · feeding · insects · hummingbirds
praying
Addressing a deity
- prayerAddress to deity
- meditationFocused attention practice
- contemplationSustained reflective attention
stillness · patience · mindfulness · Shaolin · divination · omen · spiritual · prophetic · reverence
forelegs
Animal's anterior limbs
antennae · exoskeleton · mandibles · tarsus · ovipositor · spiracles · wings · femur · tibia · spines
mimicry
Adaptive resemblance to another
- crypticObscure in meaning
- disguiseIdentity-concealing alteration
- concealmentAct of hiding something
blend · coloration · bark · flower · twig · adaptation · stealth · deception · survival · habitat
arthropod
Jointed-limb invertebrate phylum
- hexapodSix-legged arthropod
- invertebrateAnimal sans backbone
- taxonomyScience of categorical arrangement
species · genus · nymph · instar · molting · metamorphosis · morphology · phylogeny · systematics · entomologist
terrarium
Glass-walled growing enclosure
- vivariumEnclosure for living specimens
- enclosureConfined, bordered space
- cricketsJumping insects that chirp
humidity · misting · breeding · handling · husbandry · hobbyist · lifecycle · molting
- insectsant, ants, bee, bees, butterfly
- insect camouflagestick insects, walking sticks, leaf insects, countershading
mantidsaphids
Sap-feeding garden insects
caterpillars · flies · moths · crickets · grasshoppers
- praying mantisPredatory insect with grasping forelegs
- praying mantisesPredatory insects with grasping forelimbs
- mantis shrimpPowerful-clawed marine crustacean