Thursday, August 25, 2011

Summer is Complete

Well my summer is complete with the photos of one special insect.
The Praying Mantis
Chinese Mantid ( Tenodera aridifolia sinesnsis)
The only ones common in the North are 2 introduced species: the European mantid, Mantis religiosa Linn. (pale green, about 2 inches), and the Chinese Mantid (3-4 Inches) The latter is rather widely distributed and the former is largely restricted to the eastern states. In the West, Litaneutria minor occurs all the way to British Columbia. 
I have been searching for one to photograph for many years and when I do find one I don't have my camera with me. Today I was in luck, but as I started to shoot I realized my battery was low and almost dead. I looked in my bag and my back up was no where to be found. So I shot as many images as I could before my battery went dead. If I would have had my back-up battery (it was on my desk) I would have stayed and followed it around the meadow as it searched for prey.