78 Bulletin de ìa Sociclé Enloiiioloç/ujuc d'Iù/yple 



the box owing to the struggles of their victim or pushed 

 over by others running over them. They pay no atten- 

 tion to one another, even when walked over, unless bent 

 on murder or in self-defense. 



A fight is soon decided and the meal begun, bui (he 

 victim continues to struggle inleiinitlently to [hv end. 

 Two nymphs, which a|)j)eared absolutely unconscious 

 of each other's presence a nu)menl befoic, stand opposite 

 one another in threatening attitudes, i hree or four times 

 they spar at one another without attempting to grip ; 

 (thismay beeitherlojudgedislance or t(nest capacity for 

 or to encourage retort on the |)arl of the enemy. I think 

 the latter is more i)robable as the action is (|uite unlike 

 the ill-directed strokes made foni- or live bonis earlier 

 when larvae were just liatched and learning to strike, 

 moreover it icsembles action observed in two grown 

 Sp/Jo^ro/jja/jZ/.s /)/or///a/r/ ), then suddenly one shoots out 

 its arms aii(i seizes the two arms of its opponent before 

 they have time to return to safety position. In these cases 

 the head is invariably eaten lirst beginning (Vom the 

 mitre, then the front legs go and last the thorax. This 

 appears to be the limit to the ca|)acity of the victor. But 

 the meal is seldom carried as far as this as the eater 

 finds itself attacked and in self defence has to let go ; 

 this leads to extraordinary scenes of which 1 shall des- 

 cribe one, typical of all the i(>st. One victim which had 

 lost the whole of its head and the protiuding pait of 

 the prothorax was released. It stood (irndy on its lour 

 legs in a defiant altitude for more than half an hour, 

 then an uninjured mantis came that way and sj)arred at 

 it; the cripple threw out its arms and gri[)j)ed just as its 

 assaillant sparred again and by some extraordinary ac- 



