mantids ways of attracting prey?

[Johnald Chaffinch]

sometimes i'm surprised by how fruit flies will wander towards a motionless plain looking mantis, and think there might be more to what's going on than meets the eye.

ways i know of that they get prey to come near them are :

looking like a flower,

and i assume - when orchids wiggle their abdomen with that fly looking think on the end, it must attract something...

are there any other ways?

do they ever use chemicals or anything else to do it?

 

[julian camilo]

i think i read a theory somewhere that the black spots against a light colour on the inside of the forearms of some mantids (shown when they do a threat/[deimatic?] display) are supposed to look like flies feeding on something, or fly spots, or something else that attracts flies. i dont know if this is true, its just what i read and was just a theroy i think. i think i also read the flies are particularly attracted to the purpleish colour on the inside of forearms of idolomantis and gongylus. again, just a theory.

 

[Rick]

Mantids don't attract their prey. They just wait until the prey gets within reach. They are ambush predators. The ones that look like flowers or dried leaves look that way to keep their predators from seeing them.