128 A NATURALIST IN BORNEO 



would take food that was offered to them without 

 making violent efforts to escape. 



In a state of nature Maniidce do not obtain their prey 

 by hawking it on the wing as Dragon-Flies do, and since, 

 with an exception to be noted later, their method of 

 progression by walking is slow and uncertain, they 

 cannot run down their victims. They lie in wait for 

 their prey, and as a result of this habit, all or nearly all 

 Mantidat in a state of repose very closely resemble their 

 inanimate surroundings ; some are coloured green to 

 match the green of the leaves amongst which they 

 hide, others are mottled in shades of brown to resemble 

 dead leaves and bark ; some South African and South 

 American species look like sticks or wisps of vegetable 

 fibre, and these resemblances culminate in the remark- 

 able forms which look like flowers. 



It is very interesting to watch a captive Mantis, such 

 as one of the common green species of the genus 

 Hierodula, attack a large Butterfly that is introduced 

 into its cage. The movements of the Butterfly are 

 closely followed, the Mantis turning its head from side 

 to side 1 in a watchful manner. When the Butterfly 

 comes within striking distance the Mantis raises the fore- 

 part of its body, or prothorax, the raptorial front legs 

 are drawn up close against its sides and slightly rotated 

 outwards so that their inner surfaces, of a clear yellow, 

 are displayed ; meanwhile the abdomen is strongly 

 dilated so as to show the contrasting black of the 

 intersegmental membranes. Then a sudden snatch is 

 made and the Butterfly is in the grip of the destroyer. 

 The Mantis nearly always commences operations by biting 



1 I know of no other insect which moves its head in this 

 remarkable manner. G. B. L. 



