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Nature 422, 564 (10 April 2003) | doi:10.1038/422564b

Preying for dinner-time

Mantids are ambush predators that keep still and wait for other insects to approach before striking and feeding on them. Like other mantids, the female mantis Harpagomantis discolor shown here is camouflaged and remains motionless, or rocks slightly from side to side to side as if swaying in the breeze, all the while keeping its forelegs folded in a manner reminiscent of prayer.