Over the past week I have been watching for the praying mantises when doing my daily check of the roses.

I have only seen one so far, but it does look bigger. I believe that the ones that I saw earlier were newly hatched nymphs.

I have done a bit of research and find that when they hatch out the nymphs eat quite a bit. Most likely it is why I am no longer seeing a lot of aphids on my roses. It is also why I am probably not seeing as many as I did the first time as they also eat their siblings.

I had a bit of trouble focusing on the praying mantis, but the edge of the leaf is really in focus 🙂

I hope that I continue to see a few of the praying mantises in my rose bushes throughout the rest of the year.

Here is a praying mantis that I saw last year. Perhaps this one laid the eggs that hatched this year.

Here is a picture of the rose bush the little mantis nymph has been feeding in.

Steven