What Eats Praying Mantis? A Look at Their Natural Predators

Praying mantises are fascinating insects that have captured people’s imagination for centuries with their unique appearance and hunting behaviors. But like all creatures, praying mantises can also fall victim and end up as prey for other animals. In this article, we’ll take a look at the natural predators of praying mantises and how they defend themselves.

Birds

Birds are one of the most common predators of praying mantises especially smaller nymphs and juvenile mantises. Larger adult mantises can sometimes deter smaller bird species but some birds like chickens and robins will readily eat mantises of any size they can capture. The praying mantis’ camouflage helps protect it, but any movements can catch a bird’s sharp eyesight leading it to swoop down and snatch the mantis up.

Lizards

Lizards are opportunistic predators and will eat small insects like juvenile and nymph stage praying mantises when they get the chance. Larger, adult praying mantises can often fend off lizards with their spiked forelegs and speed But smaller mantises lack the leg span to defend themselves and easily fall prey Some exceptions are large predatory lizards like monitor lizards that will eat adult mantises too.

Snakes

Snakes are stealthy ambush predators and several species will eat praying mantises when given the opportunity. Smaller snakes tend to eat juvenile mantises, while larger constrictor snakes can consume full grown adults. Some snakes known to prey on praying mantises include garter snakes, rattlesnakes, and rodent-eating rat snakes. The camouflage abilities of both snakes and mantises lead to surprise ambush attacks.

Large Spiders

Most small household spiders won’t tackle a praying mantis. But larger predatory spiders like tarantulas or venomous spiders can take them down. Smaller juvenile mantises often get trapped in spider webs. Venomous spiders will bite and envenomate mantises of any size and then eat them. And giant spiders like tarantulas can easily kill adult mantises with their size and strength advantage.

Amphibians

Frogs and toads will readily eat small praying mantis nymphs that they come across near ponds and wetlands. And larger bullfrogs will consume adult mantises as well. But very large praying mantises can potentially eat smaller frogs, so relative size determines the predator in these matchups. Toads seem especially fond of snatching up mantises, likely because they are immobile sit-and-wait ambush predators themselves.

Insects

Several predatory insects will kill and eat praying mantises when they get the opportunity. This includes large assassin bugs, preying/mantisflies, digging wasps, and ants. Hornets, wasps, and hornet species will sting adult mantises to paralysis and then carry them back to feed to their larvae. And female mantises sometimes practice cannibalism by eating the male after mating.

Bats

Bats may be the most frequent and successful predator of praying mantises. Mantises are most active at night seeking prey around artificial lights. But this is also when bats are out hunting with their sophisticated echolocation. The bats can pinpoint mantises by their movement and pluck them out of the air with ease. Very few mantises survive bat encounters.

Rodents

The largest praying mantis females have occasionally been documented catching and eating small rodents like mice. But more frequently, the roles are reversed and mice and rats will eat praying mantises. The mantis’ camouflage often fails to protect them against keen-sensed rodents that hunt by smell. And their spiked forelegs provide little defense against these quick, furry mammals.

Humans

One of praying mantises’ biggest threats comes from human activities. The widespread use of chemical pesticides often unintentionally kills beneficial predatory insects like mantises. And changes to landscapes that eliminate wildlife habitat pressures mantis populations. But mantises continue adapting to human environments, giving us hope that peaceful coexistence is possible with these fascinating insects!

How Praying Mantises Defend Themselves

Praying mantises have several defensive adaptations to avoid ending up as prey:

• Camouflage – Their green or brown coloration lets them blend seamlessly into leafy vegetation.

• Stealth – Mantises are ambush predators and will remain utterly still for long periods, avoiding detection.

• Speed – Their raptorial forelegs can strike out rapidly to grasp prey or fend off attackers.

• Intimidation Displays – Threat displays of spread wings and open mandibles can startle predators.

• Chemical Spray – Some species can spray irritating chemicals as a defense.

• Escape – Their wings allow them to take flight and evade predators quickly.

Praying mantises punch far above their weight class as formidable predators in their own right. But even these skilled hunters must watch their backs and avoid ending up on the menu themselves! Their adaptations help mantises hold their own in nature’s eat or be eaten world.