Unveiling the Hidden Life of Insects!
The egg case of a Chinese mantis (Tenodera sinensis), also known as an ootheca, is round or cube-shaped, foamy, and straw brown in color. It's about the size of a Ping-Pong ball and is usually attached to twigs of small trees and bushes.
The Chinese mantis is a non-native insect that was introduced from Asia in the 1890s and is now widespread in the United States. It can be pale green, tan, or both and has vertical stripes on its face. As an adult, it can grow to be 4-5 inches long, much larger than the native Carolina mantis (Stagmomantis Carolina.)
The egg case of a native Carolina mantis is elongated, slender, and relatively smooth with lighter and darker brown stripes. It is noticeably smaller and is usually flatter in shape.
Praying mantis egg cases are usually found in the fall and winter and can contain dozens or hundreds of eggs. The ootheca hardens quickly after laying to prepare for winter, and the mother mantis dies shortly after. The foam-like insulation of the ootheca helps the eggs survive the winter.
If you find a praying mantis egg case, you can clip the stem it's attached to and relocate it to another stem or crotch in a shrub about a foot or two off the ground. You can use twine or wire to secure the stem and case in place. Avoid putting the egg case on the ground, as ants may eat the eggs.
At optimal temperatures, it can take 2-8 weeks for the eggs to hatch. Each egg case can contain 10-150 nymphs that will emerge all at once. However, mortality is high in the early stages of development and during the molting process.
Do not bring the egg sack into the house in the winter or early spring. The warmer temperature inside will cause the young to finish developing and hatch. When they emerge there will be no food supply for them and the young will not be able to withstand freezing temperatures. They will all die.
Whether native or invasive praying mantis' they are highly beneficial insects to have in your garden or yard. Their prey of choice are grasshoppers, crickets, and caterpillars. They do not eat or harm plants in any way. If you use pesticides it will also harm the predatory insects and will require the use of more pesticides in the future.
You can easily locate egg cases after the first frost causes leaves to die and drop off garden plants. They're usually about one to three feet off of the ground, which is high enough to be away from ants, ground beetles and other foraging insects, but low enough to be out the harshest weather. We often find them in the brushy areas adjacent to the garden or on t-posts around the field.
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22 май 2024
