Praying mantises (Mantodea) – an order of insects that occur most abundantly in the tropical and subtropical zones. They owe their name to the position resembling a person with their hands folded in prayer. About 2,300 species of mantis have been described.

The head is orthognathic, mobile, with large eyes (also ocelli) of the appositional type. The wings are membranous, richly veined, folded at rest along the body. The first pair of legs is well developed, used for catching prey. At the end of the abdomen are the openings of the digestive, excretory and reproductive tracts. In some species, the coloration is mimetic, resembling flowers, among which they lie in wait for prey.

Praying mantises are predatory, sometimes cannibalism occurs. However, the popular myth that each copulation ends with the female eating the male is not true. This event occurs only in 5 to 30% of cases (numbers vary depending on the study). For this to happen, several factors must occur simultaneously: there must be little food in the environment, the male must approach the female from the front, not from behind, and the mating season must be over. Cannibalism during copulation is also facilitated by the stress that these animals are subjected to in laboratory conditions.

The sex of mantises is recognized by the segments on their abdomen. The male usually has 8-9 of them, while the female has 6.