The European Mantis, Mantis religiosa (Linne), in 
Connecticut. — At the time Dr. Nutting published his 
survey on the distribution of the European mantis in New 
England, (Psyche, 57:28, 1950) only one specimen was 
recorded from Connecticut. This single specimen was 
listed as possibly from Connecticut, without data. 
During the summer of 1951 the author collected four 
males and eight females of this species at Storrs, Con- 
necticut. The first was a full grown nymph collected in 
meadow grass on August 12. It transformed into an adult 
female a few days later. The following adults also were 
collected : 
On Aug. 13, two males and a female; Aug. 19, one fe- 
male; Aug. 29, one female; Aug. 21, one male and one 
female; Sept. 12, one female; Sept. 14, one male; Sept. 15, 
one female; Sept. 16, one female. Most of the specimens 
were taken in fairly tall grass in a meadow, but one female 
was taken on a huckleberry bush at the edge of a wooded 
area and one male on the campus at the University of Con- 
necticut. Mr. Franklin B. Lewis also collected a male 
specimen on the campus. The males fly readily and probably 
their dispersal is greater locally than that of the females. 
Two egg masses were found in the field on Sept. 13. 
They were deposited on grass six or eight inches above the 
ground. Several egg masses were obtained from caged 
mantids. 
One of the captive males was eaten by the female after 
copulation. The preferred food of these mantids in cap- 
tivity appears to be small long-horned grasshoppers (Con- 
ocephalinae) , although they will feed on various species 
of grasshoppers. They have been observed to eat specimens 
as large as Neoconocephalus (Copiphorinae) and false 
katydids (Phaneropterinae) . They consistently refused to 
accept specimens of the Pentatomidae, order Hemiptera.— 
R. M. DeCoursey, University of Connecticut, Storrs, Conn. 
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