Mantises (Mantodea)

This group gathers Insects subcategory members belonging to the order Mantodea, ambush predators immediately recognizable by an elongated thorax, a triangular, highly mobile head capable of turning to track prey, and a pair of spined, raptorial front legs held folded in a distinctive praying posture while the mantis waits motionless for prey to come within striking range. It spans large, well-known species such as the European mantis, and elaborate camouflage specialists such as the orchid mantis, whose petal-like limbs and body coloration lure pollinating insects directly toward it rather than merely hiding it from view. Nearly every member is a solitary, sit-and-wait predator, and in several species the female is well known for sometimes consuming the male during or after mating.