Quiet, still, a mantid is on the hunt. Its grey-brown body is barely visible against the grey-brown bark of the tree. Just then, a butterfly flutters past and—ZAP! The mantid snatches it right from the air.

A few species of mantids chase after their prey, but most wait for food to come to them. They often stand where they can’t easily be seen: pink mantids on pink flowers, green mantids on green leaves. No veggies for them, they devour almost any animal they can, especially insects—even other mantids. Big mantids sometimes also attack small birds, frogs, and lizards. One Chinese mantid, introduced to North America, was found eating a white-footed deer mouse—hair, bones, and muscle.

Mantids hunt by day, and they’re always on the alert. Most stand on their four back legs with their front pair raised and ready to grab lunch. Big mantids might stand on all six legs, quickly bringing their front ones into position when they spot either crawling or flying prey. Unlike many other insects, mantids can turn their heads—right, left, up, and down—to watch for victims.

It’s hard to witness a mantid strike. The attack often lasts less than 30 milliseconds, yet it’s successful about 85 percent of the time! That’s because the mantid’s brain sets the angle of its lunging legs according to the angle of its watchful head.

Besides speed and accuracy, most mantid species also use sharp spines to capture their prey. Set in rows along their front legs, the spines pierce the bodies, holding them securely in place.

After a hunt, all that’s left to do is feast—something a mantid does very efficiently. Then it cleans off any bits of food stuck to its spines, getting its legs ready for action again.

Originally published in YES Mag #16, Winter 2000