Order Mantodea

Family Hymenopodidae (Flower mantids) - vivid coloration including bright reds and greens, allowing them to blend in with plants. They have an ultrasonic ear to detect predators and in some species there is a second ear of which the function is unknown.

Family Mantidae (Common praying mantids) - Most pantids belong to this family and have a green or brown coloration and wings are seldom patterned. Some species can grow up to 15 cm in length.

Praying mantid is derived from the way in which mantids hold their front legs up and together, as if they are praying. They are distinguished by their traingular heads and large eyes - and they are the only insect that can turn their head to look behind them.

Most mantids are diurnal and eat a large range of arthropods, and occasionally even vertebrates such as frogs and lizards. They reproduce by laying eggs in a papery or foam-like egg case which, in some species, is guarded by the female.

Among the 8 Families there are 2 000 species.