ORTHOPTERA. 



173 



Urn sorely neglected by entomologists. The latest synopsis, published by the British 

 museum, enumerates about nine hundred species. 



The MANTHXE is the only family of the Orthoptera in which all the members are car- 

 nivorous. It is also separated from all the other families by the peculiar structure of 

 the front pair of legs, which are constructed for grasping. The species, as a rule, 

 are large, and, like the Phasmidae, often bear a striking resemblance to various 

 leaves and twigs upon which they sit while waiting for their prey. The Mantidae 

 have become popularly known under a variety of names, such as Rear-horses, Race- 

 horses, Praying-insects and Soothsayers, all of which have originated from the 

 peculiar positions assumed by them at different times, especially when waiting for 

 their prey. 



The movements of the Mantidae are sluggish ; their colors are variable ; they 

 have long and linear bodies ; and in some species the wings are broad and leaf-like. 

 The head is triangular in form, perpendicular, and furnished with 

 sharp but small jaws. The eyes are very large and prominent, and 

 between them are situated the rather short and bristle-like antennae 

 and three ocelli. The front legs, which are the chief characteristic 

 of the family, are large, strong, and furnished with numerous sharp 

 spines ; they are mostly carried in a folded position, and but little 

 used in walking, their true use being that of seizing and holding the 

 insects upon which they feed. The males are more slender and more 

 active than the females, their narrower and longer wings permitting 

 more ready flight. In watching and seizing their prey their motions 

 are wary and stealthy until the final stroke of capture, and there are 

 few more amusing sights than that of one of these creatures silently 

 swaying from side to side, or stealthily moving one limb after another, 

 the head with its prominent eyes turning and watching every motion 

 of the coveted animal meanwhile. The eggs are laid in clusters upon 

 twigs and encased in a flattened ovate case or ootheca. This ootheca 



^j 



is composed of hardened silk, in which characteristic it differs from 

 that of the female cockroach. This peculiar habit of encasing the 

 eggs within a single receptacle would seem to indicate a common 

 origin and the close relationship of the two families. 



The young mantis is long and linear, and has the habit of curving 

 up the end of the body and throwing back the head and neck. It 

 comes into the world encased in a thin and delicate pellicle (amnion) 

 which is soon cast off and eaten. The young mantes at once dis- 

 play their voracity by attacking one another. They are the counter- 

 part of the fully matured insect in respect to their mode of life, and what is true of 

 one species is also true of all the others. 



The Mantidae are nocturnal to a certain degree, especially in their movements and 

 flights, which are mostly performed after sunset. The female, although possessing 

 pretty well developed wings, does not fly. The wings are used, however, in easing 

 herself from a higher to a lower elevation, also w r hen in battle with one of her own 

 kind, or when pouncing upon her prey, at which time she hoists them very much as 

 does a swan when irritated. These insects in some localities have gained the popular 

 reputation of being very meek and reverential, and on this account have received the 

 name of Praying Mantes. 



FIG. 249. Egg cap- 

 sules of Phasmo- 

 mantis Carolina. 



