A Gardeners Forum Forums Members History Forum Life 2005 Meg's Praying Mantis Cocoon

I found this on my chain link fence today. Is this a bee thing?? Or what?

Hmmmm, now I am really curious. The plant on the left either grew through it or was made around it and looks kinda dead (no green at least). That is really interesting. Keep an eye on it for awhile....maybe have one of the kids keep an eye out for whatever,.....would be interesting to cut it open to look inside but if it is a good thing wouldn't want to see it destroyed. Maybe Weezie can get Buglady to come take a look.

Is it hard...did you tap on it...hollow sounding?....kinda looks like fried pork skins a little bit...I know it isn't though.

It appears to be darker on the top left side as well. Hmmmm.

Looks like a freshly made caccoon(sp?).

It looks like a TV show in the making to me, you know the sort, it fell from the sky and invaded my mother, etc...

Hey Meg,

I hope you didn't knock that cocoon off your fence.

I think it might be a praying mantis cocoon.

http://schmidling.netfirms.com/mantis.htm

That IS a Praying Mantis eggcase. In the spring thousands of tiny Praying Mantises (?), about 1/4 long will emerge, with ravenous apetites, and start eating everything in sight (including each other).

wow that is so kewl! lucky you meg!! please keep us updated on what happens and when the babies hatch! and make sure to take pics! I've never seen one of those before :-)

Wow Meg what a find!

Please keep us updated...and if you wouldn't mind....please post your updates on this thread so that we can keep it all together....if it happens to get archived just ask Bill or I to retrieve it.(helpful hint....remember what you titled the topic...would you do me a favor and change the title to Meg's praying mantis cocoon....1st, so you and I will remember...lol and 2ndly, for other members/visitors looking for this kind of information can find it easily). Thank you! Catlover

Wow, that is sooooo cool!! I love my praying mantis' and how they take care of so many bad buggies. I know to not try to handle them, unlike my kids who try really hard, only to have it fly off! (lucky them, they didn't get bit for it!)

It's not all that big, and just sits on the cross section of my chain fence. The green/brown you see around it, is just the tall grass/weeds growing up around the fence there.

I'll be keeping my eyes on it! And yea, if someone could change the title to Meg's Praying Mantis Cocoon, or something like that.. that'd make it easier to find.

Meg

What fun that'll be if you get to
see them all!!!!
Keep your camera handy!!!

Wow, that is awesome !!

Really cool Meg.....

SUPA COOL!!!! I ordered praying mantis egg cases from Gurney's a couple years ago, and that is definitely what I got. It was an awesome experience. When they hatched, there were hundreds of tiny, fully formed mantis' (mantissessss??). Too bad they dont sell them anymore.

Where are you at? I wonder if it would be a good idea to provide some shelter for the winter, like a plastic flower pot somehow positioned on top, to keep snow and ice off? Although Im sure momma mantis knew what she was doing putting it there.

--Karen

I have tons of praying mantis, but have never seen a cocoon, wondering where mine are hiding theirs?

My neighbor invited all the kids over to watch a praying mantis give birth - they said a pouch opened and there they were - no cocoons. Now I wonder if it was a praying mantis - what kind of insect does that?

Only thing I can think of would be a spider, the kind that live underground and tote their egg sack around with them??? But they are tiny so no way would it have been mistaken for a manits. HMMMMMMM!!!!

-Karen

Meg....any updates??????

yea I'm wondering too??