Praying Mantises More Visible To The Casual Observer This Time Of Year
By John McDevitt
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- If you have been noticing more praying mantises in the area -- you're not alone.
There are two mantis species found in the area: the Chinese praying mantis and European praying mantis.
This time of year, the insects are more visible to the casual observer.
"They reach adulthood in August/September and they're bigger and that's why they're seen more. They lay eggs in September and October, but they are active," says Sean Stallworth with the Academy of Natural Sciences at Drexel University.
He says they are adults this time of year.
"That's why we are just seeing more. I don't think it's a boom of mantises in the area and we are under attack or anything like that."
Praying matises' eggs stay in a case through the winter and hatch in the spring. Their average life span is about a year.
