The Amazing Staying power of roaches

[Snake lover 3-25]

yeah....... i don't like spiders either..... LOL i think the praying mantis is the onnly bug i like LOL

[jeanette]

ive heard the praying mantis actually make good pets, dont know how true it is though, but i agree they are actually very cool top look at

[Snake lover 3-25]

yes i keep a new one as a pet each summer..... idk what i would do with them in winter though.... but in summer i just go out every night and catch some bugs near the light on our garage and watch him eat.... it's very cool........ they can catch a moth right between their hands no matter how fast it is!!!

[jeanette]

wow that is very cool, are they like an ambush predator then? using the camoflage as a weapon?

[Snake lover 3-25]

yup.... they just sit there and then suddenly attack!!!!!! it's really neat to see..... if you're close enough you actually hear the clap of their arms as they capture their prey!!!!!!!

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

praying mantids are ambush predators. they rely on their camoflage and sit and wait for something to come close. They have amazing vision, and once they see a meal they will inch their way towards it and grab it with their two front legs, which have spurs on them that act like teeth, holding their meal in place. They only live for one year and breeding season. Around here, they are born during the first few warm days, out of a large egg sac that looks a lot like foam. They spend the summer growing and usually by july they are reaching adulthood. The males then seek out a female, and 90% of the time, the female will reach back during mating and rip the males head off at eat it during copulation. I used to have a 6 foot little tree that mantids lived and bred on all summer, I would always stuff the females full so tehy didnt kill my males! The females lay their egg sac in late summer/fall, and even if you bring them inside when it gets cold, they will always die by the end of november. They make great pets, theyll take bugs right out of your hands, and if you scare them they will open thier wings up and do this creepy butterfly like dance.. oh yes and they will bite you and stab you with their pokers too!!! its just really sad that they are an insect you can actually really bond with and enjoy keeping, and then they are gone!!!

[jeanette]

awww they live such short lives, but i guess they really do know how to live full lives.

[Snake lover 3-25]

yeah..... but the one's i've had haven't bit or poked me yet!!!!! they usually just climb to the top of my head and wait for a meal to come by!!!

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

thats good though, you really dont want to expierience it... it actually hurts when a 6 inch insect starts tearing at your flesh.

[Snake lover 3-25]

oh lovely thaughts shannon....... that's just what i want to hear.....