unexpected arrival of a mythical beast

Riddle: What has the head and forelimbs of a Praying Mantis, and the body and hind limbs of a Paper Wasp?

Solution: the Brown Mantidfly (Climaciella brunnea)

Yesterday, I discovered my favourite mythical beast on a blade of grass in the meadow beside the woods. It took me quite by surprise as I hadn’t expected to see one for about another two weeks. Last year, on July 7th and 8th, about two dozen Brown Mantidflies appeared on the flowers of Common Milkweed plants growing in the oldfield pastures here at the farm. For two days, they wandered about over the flowers. I’m not entirely sure what they were up to — maybe they were attracted by the blooms which were full of nectar and covered with insects that might have made suitable prey. Or, perhaps they came to lay eggs that I didn’t see. Whatever the reason, they soon vanished as quickly as they came.

If you’ve been following my blog for awhile, you’ll know that I’m interested in phenology — the study of cyclic or seasonal natural phenomena. I keep photographic records of the arrival and development of many creatures – particularly insects. This year, the Common Milkweed seems to be a little ahead in its development compared to 2005. Many plants have flowers, and some of those are racing towards being full blown — the stage that seemed to attract last year’s aggregation of Mantidflies. It will be interesting to see if they are a little early this year. My guess is that I may find a few more over the next few days.

They’re odd-looking insects, reminding me of a hybrid mythical beast — a Harpy, or a Sphinx. They’re about the size and colour of a Paper Wasp, but with an elongated, neck-like pronotum and a pair of wickedly equipped fore legs. Tightly folded when not in use, the legs look innocuous enough, but once extended, sharp spurs and sickle-like “claws” are revealed (click on above photo to see larger view). You might catch a glimpse of the extended legs when the Mantidfly is moving about, or if it becomes defensive. In the blink of an eye, these insects will grasp a leaf, or make a quick slash at a threatening object, before curling their limbs back to the folded position (see below photo). The Brown Mantidfly has dark-bordered wings which are held angled outwards to mimic those of a wasp. Their appearance may seem a little threatening, but I’ve found them to be fairly docile. However, I haven’t yet tempted one to strike at my finger with its forelegs as I suspect it could actually inflict some small damage. Although they look wasp-like, Mantidflies are members of the Family Mantispidae, which belongs to the Order Neuroptera — a group of insects with wings that have many conspicuous veins.

If you’re interested in viewing more photos of these fascinating insects, I have posted quite a few of last year’s photos in my online Neuroptera Gallery. There is also a photo of an insect with its forelegs partially extended. That shot was taken after the Mantidfly had been chilled slightly in the refrigerator and then photographed through a glass petri dish.

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33 Responses to “unexpected arrival of a mythical beast”

  1. Mike Says:

    Yow, that is a monster! Beautiful.

  2. Jimmy Says:

    WoW! I have heard of these before and never really seen a picture of one…really cool looking.

  3. Mark Paris Says:

    I never knew such a creature existed. It does look like a mythical beast.

  4. robin andrea Says:

    Wow. That is one interesting looking insect. Your place is just hopping with fantastic creatures. How cool. Enjoy it.

  5. Duncan Says:

    Mythical beast sure is an apt description, looks like it’s made of parts of two insects.

  6. Wayne Says:

    I’ve been watching out for these guys – they’re utterly bizarre! Nice find, Bev.

  7. burning silo Says:

    Everyone – Yes, this was a very neat find! I’ve seen them before, but it’s always exciting when you come across one unexpectedly. They’re awesome little creatures. All I can say is that I’m glad they aren’t a lot bigger.. say.. oh… 2 or 3 feet long. Boy, would that ever be scary!!! (but that goes for plenty of other insects as well). If you’re watching for these in your own area, do check Common Milkweed flowers… especially when the flowers have turned quite pink and are full of nectar, strong-sweet smell, and are very sticky. That’s how I found the large numbers of Mantidflies last summer. There were a couple on almost every flower in a section of the oldfield pastures here at the farm.

  8. Xris (Flatbush Gardener) Says:

    You get the coolest bugs. I’m jealous.

  9. burning silo Says:

    Xris – Yes, we do! I guess the thing is that we have a fairly diverse habitat here at the farm. Quite a bit of oldfield meadow, a drainage creek which is actually like a miniature marsh, succession forest with some mixed hardwood, some soggy pastures with willow and brush, plenty of hedgerows with everything from wild apples to grapes and raspberries, and then an old stand of Black locust at the back of the land. Bordering our property is a 30 year old Red Pine plantation and a much older White Pine plantation. I’ve also been planting trees around our place for the past 30 years, so there is everything from Tamarack, to spruce, Highbush Cranberry, Walnut and Butternut, and various maples. The net result is food plants for all – which means a lot of interesting insects for me to photograph (not the original intention, but it’s turned out to be very convenient fo me).

  10. Wayne Says:

    Habitats! Yes!

    There’s one habitat that I wish we had more of, and I’ve been tempted to create it – sunny meadow. We have upperland pine forest with some fairly old loblolly pines that I want to keep for the possibility of red-cockaded woodpeckers somewhere down the line. An intermediate level containing hickories, walnuts, eastern redcedar. And then lowerland hardwood filled with beech, hornbeam, white oak, northern red oak, tulip poplar. And a floodplain that is at least somewhat sunny. Basically we’re a little too glutted with shading trees.

  11. burning silo Says:

    Wayne — Many of the birding people will tell you that the habitat that seems to be on the greatest decline is the meadow. If not used for development, meadows often end up being cultivated for cash crops, or planted with trees. Of course, trees are good too, but there are so many species of birds that require meadows for nesting, feeding, hunting, etc… The same goes for insects. Oldfield meadows are one of the prime habitats for a vast number of insects. About half of our farm is oldfield habitat and it’s actually about the most fascinating part of all — well, that and the fencerows which are a real gold mine for birds and insects. I guess the big thing is that we need diversity of habitat and that seems a little endangered these days when land is valued in dollars instead of for the wildlife it supports.

  12. Carel Says:

    In my lifetime I’ve seen a total of one mantispid–I caught it on my grade school playground, and kept it for several weeks. It snatched houseflies from midair flight, sliced off the head, and drank the contents from the resultant hole. I’ve kept one eye open for them during the ensuing 40 years, so far without reward. My assumption at the time was that I’d found a paper wasp-mantid hybrid.

  13. burning silo Says:

    Carel – Very interesting to read about the hunting techniques of the Mantidfly that you kept when you were young. They really are quite fascinating creatures. They also seem to be rare as I’m sure I’d find them more frequently if they were around. I always wanted to see one and finally did when asked to photograph a live specimen at a local history museum. I found my first one shortly after that, on a milkweed plant along an old railway line where I like to hike. The next time was at my farm during the aggregation on the milkweed flowers last summer — and that was quite spectacular. I very much enjoyed the two days when there were so many of them moving about over the flowers. This year’s find on a blade of grass was a complete surprise — especially as it was even difficult to re-find after I initially spotted it. All I can think of that would explain seeing it was that its body is a bit different colored than any wasp that I’ve seen — being a slightly pinkish-brown — so it stood out against the grass. Last summer when I found so many of them on the milkweed, I noticed that the pinkish-brown colour blended well with some of the darker stemmed milkweed — the colour being almost identical — so that may help to explain their coloration.

  14. Brandon Says:

    Hi! I just happened upon one of these cool creatures last evening while at a local park in Parchment Michigan. It was sitting on top of one of the benches I usually sit and read at. At first I thought it was a wasp but after closer inspection I realized it wasn’t. I brought it home and showed it to my family. They didn’t know what it was but were also fascinated by it. Thanks for the information! It’s one of the coolest insects I’ve ever seen. I released it into our backyard.

  15. burning silo Says:

    Hi Brandon! That’s pretty exciting about having found a Mantidfly. You’re right… it is one very cool insect. I’ve been enjoying watching and photographing them here at my farm for the past few days. I’ll be posting an update with some photos in the next day or so.

  16. Tyler Says:

    Hi,

    I live in Wisconsin ans found one up north perched on a battery. I was amazed by this creature and looked everywhere to find out what it was. My father-in-law picked it up and the docile insect moved about on his hand with no apparent care in the world. We then released it back into the wild. Your pictures are great and this forum has been very informative!!!!!!!!!

  17. burning silo Says:

    Hi Tyler – It’s interesting to hear from people who didn’t know what these insects were before they found them. Also good to hear that they were looked at and then released again. Some people are so nervous of insects that I’m sure these must occasionally be killed by those who are afraid of wasps, etc… Thanks for dropping by to visit and leaving a comment on my blog. Glad you’ve enjoyed the info and discussion!

  18. bhill Says:

    can these things sting too?!?

  19. burning silo Says:

    No, they don’t sting. They just mimic the hind parts of a wasp in appearance. Here is a brief article that explains about their mimicry.

  20. Ian Says:

    I had no idea this creature existed….speechless! amazing looking animal. Great photo by the way!

  21. burning silo Says:

    Ian – I didn’t know they existed until a few years ago. I always hoped I’d see one. Now I’ve seen them several times and I still find them amazing.

  22. Mike Says:

    Wow. This is the coolest insect ever, and I usually dislike bugs. I’m wondering how such a unique structure came about, hmm?

  23. burning silo Says:

    Mike – yes, it’s a very cool insect. It certainly combines some interesting adaptations… looks enough like a wasp that most predators will leave it alone, but is equipped with the front legs of a mantis for capturing prey. Pretty neat!

  24. Alan Says:

    Nice shots!

    I have only seen one of these before. I was working for my neighbor driving a tractor, cutting hay when I noticed an odd looking red paper wasp land on a bit of dried mud on my window. The first thing i noticed was that this wasp only had 4 legs. then it’s large head split in half as it reached for the window sill! man was a shocked. i searched more than once to find out what it was and was unable find it untill now. i often wondered if it mimics the wasp simply for defence, or possibly in order to approach a wasp nest to feed on the wasps, or grubs? anyone know? TY for the neat site.

  25. bev Says:

    Hi Alan – Interesting story! Also an interesting idea about the wasp using mimcry to approach real wasps. I don’t know and haven’t seen too much on their actual hunting behaviour. I have seen one kill ants that came near to it. It didn’t seem to be interested in eating the ants, but it killed them if they came within reach. Watching them hanging out on milkweed plants around the flowers, etc.. I get the impression that they might be trying to catch some of the many kinds of insects that frequent milkweed plants and their flowers. I continue to watch them on the rare occasions when they are around as I hope to learn more about them. Thanks regarding the site — glad you like it.

  26. Briscoe Says:

    I caught one on a boat in Louisiana. I thought it was a wasp of course, until closer examination. What an awesome creature.

  27. Burning Silo » Blog Archive » like clockwork Says:

    […] Yes, indeed… just like clockwork. Yesterday, June 21, 2007, I found the first Brown Mantidfly (Climaciella brunnea) of the summer (click on image for larger view). Those of you who have been reading my blog for awhile may remember that I posted about these little creatures exactly one year ago today, after finding the first mantidfly of 2006 on June 21st. Isn’t that interesting? Don’t you just love seeing phenology in action? […]

  28. Burning Silo » Blog Archive » they’re baaaack!!! Says:

    […] Yes, indeed! As you may recall, on June 22nd, I reported having found a lone Brown Mantidfly (Climaciella brunnea) on a blade of grass the previous day. In that post I wrote: If you’ve been following my blog for awhile, you’ll know that I’m interested in phenology — the study of cyclic or seasonal natural phenomena. I keep photographic records of the arrival and development of many creatures – particularly insects. This year, the Common Milkweed seems to be a little ahead in its development compared to 2005. Many plants have flowers, and some of those are racing towards being full blown — the stage that seemed to attract last year’s aggregation of Mantidflies. It will be interesting to see if they are a little early this year. My guess is that I may find a few more over the next few days. […]

  29. Rob Vanderkam Says:

    Hello, I found one of these yesterday. I see you are in Eastern Ontario, as I am. I am on the Clyde River north of Lanark and Perth. The milkweed is not flowering yet near my place.

    FYI – I also found a scorpion fly.

    Rob

  30. bev Says:

    Hi Rob — That’s interesting as I’ve just recently seen my first one of 2007 as well — I wrote about it more recently on this blog. I’ve also been seeing scorpion flies — the greatest number of them I’ve ever seen. One morning a couple of weeks ago, I stopped counting at about two dozen. Seemed like quite an unusual number!

  31. Burning Silo » Blog Archive » he and she Says:

    […] For about three weeks, I’ve been finding Scorpionflies here at the farm and at other sites which I frequent. I suppose that these small insects fall into almost the same category as the Mantidflies which I wrote about a few days ago — composed of parts that look as though they came from several different creatures. Their wings look a bit like those of a Deer fly, being heavily patterned. However, Scorpionflies are not flies at all, actually having four membranous wings instead of the fly’s two wings. They have elongated heads which, in my opinion, give them the look of a rather homely horse or mule. But most conspicuous of all, is the feature that gives them their name — the males possess a long curling tail that ends in a bulb that looks rather like the stinger of a Scorpion (see above – click on image for larger view). However, the appendage is actually the male’s genitalia. Females lack this feature, their tails being long and straight and ending in a simple point (see image below — tail is held down flat and hidden beneath the female’s wings). Based on observation of both male and female insects, the females seem to be somewhat larger than the males. […]

  32. Ted Says:

    What a great and interesting find (this Blog)! My 16 yr old son and I stumbled upon this critter last night and thought we had discovered a new species of insect. We photo documented it and started searching the internet to see if we could find anything about it. Here is the best image I captured! We thought we might earn the naming rights had we been the first to spot this awesome critter!. Thanks for the blog!

  33. bev Says:

    Hi Ted – That’s a wonderful image of a Mantidfly! It’s great that you got to see one. Not that many people notice them.