Fasciated conehead mantid
The fasciated conehead mantid is a strange-looking praying mantis with a pointy cone on its head, like a tall hat. Its thin legs have yellow-green stripes and little flaps, so it looks just like a bit of plant. You only notice it when it moves.
How fast is it?
Fun facts
It can turn its head and its grabbing front legs sideways without moving the rest of its body.
It sways and jerks like a plant in the wind, which helps it hide and judge distances.
It beats its wings about 30 times a second and is a good flier for a mantis.
It has a single ear in the middle of its chest that may help it hear hunting bats and escape.
Females often wait on flowers to catch honeybees.
Most asked questions about Fasciated conehead mantid
?Is the fasciated conehead mantid dangerous?
No. It is harmless to people and hunts only insects.
?What does the conehead mantid eat?
Fast flying insects such as flies and bees.
?Why does it have a cone on its head?
The cone is part of its strange shape that makes it look like a plant, so it can hide.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Empusa fasciata
- Group
- Mantises
- Family
- Empusidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Mantodea > Empusidae
- Lives on
- Europe, Asia, Africa
- Also known as
- Devil's mare
Where the facts come from
- Empusa fasciata (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Gideon Pisanty ( Gidip ) ืืืขืื ืคืืื ืื. CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons. The sticker of this bug is drawn from this picture.
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