Idolomantis diabolica - Devil's Mantis [Close-Up]

[canaress]

what life stage were this mantis??

[DJAlMighty247]

@canaress L4, L5, something like that.

[canaress]

@DJAlMighty247 Usually Idolomantis don't eat worm and crawling Insects only flies but when i first saw i appears bizarre.

[noobrider100]

Devils mantis? I thought this was a Dead leaf mantis??

[DJAlMighty247]

@noobrider100 I think the Deroplatys-mantis is usually the "Dead leaf mantis"

[keeyk118b]

how long do they live as adults ?

[IRONMANTIS4]

Should be named Dragon Mantis or Golden Dragon Mantis .

[pwndog1337]

Can this species change colors? ive never seen one this color before.

[DJAlMighty247]

@pwndog1337 Many species changes colors as they grow bigger. Mostly from green to brown and the other way around.

[Care4URchameleon]

do you have any male idolo that you can sell me or exchange for L2 start of D Lobata nymphs? I also have two captive bred D. Dessicata ooth. :)

[canaress]

@Care4URchameleon i can show you some one that sells mantis with nice price and he is so honest if you want just tell me.

[m92luvme]

What is it eating?

[DJAlMighty247]

@m92luvme It's a mealworm pupa.

[Eragarev]

*sigh*. I wish I looked like a leaf..

[styrofoamheart]

i want one of these. i have ghosts, boxers and spiny flowers.

[cayetanoluis]

The reason they have such an uncanny resemblance to dry leaves is because the lineage evolved through gradual degrees with selection favouring variants that looked a little more like a dry leaf than their ancestors. Each successive change was preserved because it was that little bit better at fooling prey. All one needs to imagine is a mantis that was brown, then one that was a bit rougher, a bit rougher, a bit more like a leaf in some other respect, and so on.

[skogstad]

@cayetanoluis Thank you for using actual science- I don't think most people understand how evolution and adaptation actually work, and how subtle these degrees are. No mantis emerges clear then just forms to match structure with the plant they happen to be on. :)

[amethyst8teen]

@skogstad I agree with you, but I feel I should mention that there is a mantis that will change its colors to match the plant it is living on. It will turn green if it spends time on leaves, and if you place it on pink flowers a few days later it will develop striking pink markings.

[trueweltall33]

@amethyst8teen What species of mantis turns pink from the flowers it is on in a matter of days?

[amethyst8teen]

@trueweltall33 I believe its the African flower mantis particularly in its juvenile stages, or at least that's what the article I read identified it as.

[canaress]

@amethyst8teen idolomantis diabolica.

[TheUnholyAntichrist]

god created them as they are, it is to him you owe wonder and respect!!!

...only shiting you, its all darwin!!!

[aamvb]

thats one mean looking mantis, but the way the colour camo and shape accure is just amazing !!!! no way can something evolve like that ? =/

[turoturothegreat]

the whole point of evolution is that the ones with camo and shape live and thus none are left with incorrect camo and shape

[aamvb]

that still doesnt mean that the camo mantids would live on or evolve like that because theres thousands of species that are just green or flower like, how could an insect actually evolve to look like a specific plant or texture ? =/

[N9olan]

That's just it nothing "evolves" they either acclimate to their environment and/or they are created like that from the start.

[aamvb]

i agree with that, but now thats driving us to a different subject altogether, how the universe and all life was created. there's not enough space on here 4 that debate..lol lets stick to mantis talk. Anyone else own a mantis ??? ive got 4 peacock mantids at the mo =]

[N9olan]

Usually they look similar to whatever they perch on in their environment. Camouflage to avoid predators and to catch prey. Mine was brightly green and flew away. I know a guy that had a hooded one.

[Wrattenmusic]

The patterns we see in the plants were created by the plants DNA, the insect has just stumbled upon a sequence in itself which mimics the physical patterns. It's really simple, but we tend to over-glorify what we see as an 'intricate pattern' - when really it is just an equation

[aamvb]

i dont believe it just ramdomly stumbled apon a plant that had the exact colouring as itself, and if it did how could it know this, some plants have insects that only live on there flowers and have mouths shaped only for that plant. if that insect just stumbled across that plant, from an evolution point of view limmiting urself to one plant seems dangerous for the species if that plants gone so is the insect, even though the God theory isnt my bag, it seems like creation not evolution.

[Wrattenmusic]

Did the green insect stumble upon a green tree.... OR did a green colour variation in a specific line of brown mantids mean that when they populated in a green bush, the green ones survived and reproduced better than the brown ones. The green insect does not know it's green, but it will be the fittest for survival when a predator comes along. The greater the pressure against an organism, the greater the advantage is from mutation. Adapting to one tree allows for increased efficiency.

[RawrItsOllie]

They actually adapt according to the humidity of whereever they are, pretty clever eh? though they mainly have a brown colour in the wild because they live in dead or dried up bushes

[MrDib153]

mantids can evolve to appear however they need too in order to survive in theyre environment, they are born CLEAR thus making them able to adapt accordingly

[utterbeastage]

mine arrived in the post a few days ago , eating everything in sight

[AliensVsCoronationSt]

Im absolutely scared to death of these things. I find it terrifying yet beautiful at the same time.

[CounterSnipes]

Thats some amazing camo, amazing that it can look so much like leaves.

[jacobbobcorn]

i used to have a green one...whered u get that color?! ur mantis fits under the autumn leaves..it's so pretty.

[b3rnstein]

Idolomantis diabolica is always that shade until it gets adult. After the last skinning it will take roughly a week to turn it green.

[punchbag24]

wow it looks like a bunch of leaves, cool!

[VengefulRonin]

What's it eating? Looks like a grub or something.

[cmurphy10]

beautiful mantis, great video

[yoboyjean]

i got three eggs this spring but i ll only take on e cause my garden needs them to

[xEazx11]

these mantises are supposed to be so popular but i cant even find out how big they get besides every site on google saying ''really big''

[Stormrider9]

An Idolomantis adult female grows to be around 14-15 centimeters long.