Mantid

From Wiki 5A

The mantid is a very helpful to farmers and gardeners because they eat a great amount of insect pests. A mantid will eat until it is stuffed and then it will capture another creature and start eating again! It won't hesitate to attack something bigger than it is. The largest mantids will eat small birds, frogs, and small lizards. The smaller mantids eat large caterpillars, butterflies, flies, bees, wasp, and day flying moths. Mantids even eat other mantids. The female mantid will usually eat the male with whom she has just mated.

There are many different kinds of mantids. Most are camouflaged in ways that help it to hide. Many are green and blend into grass and leaves. Some look like bits of tree bark. Some are long and thin like twigs. Some are brightly colored and hide among flowers. Mantids are large insects. Some mantids grow from 2 to 5 inches long.

Mantids are also the kinds of insects that can be turned into pets! They can be taught to take raw meat and fruit from a persons fingers.

Some of the habitats that the mantid have are meadows, gardens, tall herbs, flower clusters, and shrubs. The range is from Massachusetts, New Jersey, and West of Ohio.