Mantis ID Please!

[iain5]

Hi everyone - just an ID request. I caught this mantis about 6 weeks back when it was 3 molts younger. I actually caught a male of the same species the same day, but he mis-molted pretty badly when he was going sub-adult so I froze him. I actually just let this one go yesterday, but I want to know what I was keeping.

Location = Northeastern Kansas, caught in medium-high grass between forest and and open field. The photo with my hand is for scale.

 

[ismart]

looks like a common chinese mantis (tenodera sinensis).

 

[The_Asa]

That's Chinese/

 

[iain5]

Unless there are subspecies of Chinese mantis that I don't know about, I don't think it is based on coloration and size. I've kept a few wild male Chinese before and they were noticably larger than this one, and had the characteristic overall brown coloration with the green only on the sides of the wings.

My first guess was European, but I've never kept them before so I don't know for sure.

 

[The_Asa]

Many Chinese mantids are completely green. And it seems their size varies from 7 1/2 to 10 centimeters. I don't see any markings on the raptorial arms so it can't be European.

 

[iain5]

Interesting...are there subspecies of Chinese mantids or is it just environmental/luck how they end up looking. I honestly thought they were all the really big brown/green ones I'm used to finding and seeing pictures of.

 

[Rick]

Interesting...are there subspecies of Chinese mantids or is it just environmental/luck how they end up looking. I honestly thought they were all the really big brown/green ones I'm used to finding and seeing pictures of.

They come in brown and green but always have the green stripe on the wing. I have found both colors within 10 ft of each other. That one is normal size.

 

[collinchang635]

They come in brown and green but always have the green stripe on the wing. I have found both colors within 10 ft of each other. That one is normal size.

How big is normal size?