Quick bug hunt today

Went back near the same place as last time but a new section of the park. Found literally hundreds of chinese, and a couple carolina. Seems the narrow wing mantis is restricted to one small area that I searched last time. I wonder if that has something to do with the chinese mantids.

Found a mating pair, or should I say a female and half a male:













Not sure if this guy did this to the ooth or not. It was an ooth from this year too.







Hatched:

Three ooths in this pic:





Carolina female:

Narrow wing mantis ooth:







Compared to chinese ooth:

Narrow wing mantis male:





Another one:









Carolina ooth:

Carolina ooth. If you look closely you will see a parasitic wasp laying eggs in the ooth.













Male chinese:

See em both?









I like this pic!

Oh man, you have the ultimate eye! Nice pics, it's like a mantis haven.

awesome pictures! You really have an eye for finding these guys. In some of the pics it took me a moment or so to even spot the mantis.

Wow.... that place should be set aside as a National Heritage Mantis site !

love the green chinese mantids... never seen one green.

lemmiwinks said:

love the green chinese mantids... never seen one green.

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This year I am finding 90% green.

Rick said:

This year I am finding 90% green.

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Lucky, although I've never seen a Chinese mantis here in CO. Only europeans and ground mantids.

Great pics! Can't wait until we go collecting.

Rick said:

This year I am finding 90% green.

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Same here. I have only found one brown one, the rest have been green.

Really fun stuff.

Those are outstanding pictures! What a wonderful place. I have never had luck like that.

Can you give me some pointers on the best types of places to look for mantids? You seem to have excellent luck finding them when you go out.

Rebecca

Great little bug hunt, Rick. When you hold the mantids like that they seem to be holding their arms up saying, "I give... I give!"

Katnapper said:

Great little bug hunt, Rick. When you hold the mantids like that they seem to be holding their arms up saying, "I give... I give!"

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:lol:

charleyandbecky said:

Those are outstanding pictures! What a wonderful place. I have never had luck like that.Can you give me some pointers on the best types of places to look for mantids? You seem to have excellent luck finding them when you go out.

Rebecca

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Places like you see in my pics. You have places like that too. Lots of weeds. Meadows, overgrown ditches/fencelines, places where large sets of powerlines cross through the country, wil probably be weedy underneath them. Any weedy place should hold lots of feeder insects which will mean mantids.

interested in trading any ooths you find if their not hatched though you prob dont need any more miomantis or creobroter perhaps?

massaman said:

interested in trading any ooths you find if their not hatched though you prob dont need any more miomantis or creobroter perhaps?

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I did collect some chinese ooths. I am interested in some creobroters since mine died from that issue I was having.