Japanese praying mantis

Samurai-armored praying mantis. Japanese woodcut-style art.

Peony, Praying Mantis - Created by Tanaka Yohu & published by Yamada in 1892

I thought the "Mr. Magoo" helmet was unusual, but this one with a golden praying mantis is extraordinary. It's part of a new acquisition by the museum at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. The armor came from a Japanese museum that acquired it in 1927 from a treasury that was part of the Tokugawa Shogunate, the family of warlords who ruled Japan from 1600 until 1868. It was made in the early 1600s in Kii Province, south of Kyoto, which was then headed by Tokugawa Yorinobu (1602-71), the 10th…

J.C. Fardon - Praying Mantis, 1940s

The artist Murata Seimin closely studied his animal subjects, which lends realism to the details of this praying mantis. The insect is also positioned in a pose that easily provides support for a writing brush to rest upon.

Articulated forms first made as novelties for samurai became popular items in the export market.

Tenodera sinensis – Chinese Mantis One summer long ago, I watched as this praying mantis snatched a grasshopper out of midair. Scientists using high-speed cameras have captured the mantis strike at 30 to 50 one-thousandths of a second — faster than the eye can see. Mantids rely on their exquisite camouflage while hunting. They usually remain in […]

Okimono or small sculpture in the form of a quizzical praying mantis. Carved of deer antler, the eyes inlaid in radenor mother-of-pearl. Signed on the reverse at the end of the wings by the...

White Mantis

Budwing praying mantis

free! contest. Give away for care sheet and info.

No one likes bugs. Well, unless you're an entomologist. But not all bugs are created equal, especially when it comes to those that live in the garden. Some pollinate the crops or feed on destructive pests, while others are simply passing through. Here are eight bugs you should be happy to have in your garden.