The Hot Pepper

i have a Praying Mantis in an aphid infested shrub near my front door. When i first saw it i was excited because i know that they are carnivorous and eat a lot of garden pests. i live in an apartment and the Landscapers trim the shrubs often so when i saw the Praying Mantis again on the same shrub i called it Lucky because it had survived.

After a few weeks of seeing it daily i began to wonder why it had not cleared the shrub of aphids and for that matter why the Lady Bugs i was releasing every week on the plant were not clearing the shrub of aphids. All the other nearby Shrubs (Pyracantha) were fairly clear of the little pests.

So i began to watch the shrub closely and after i watched the Mantis eat a few Lady bugs and found that the weekly 30 or so Lady Bugs i released on the shrub are actually the food source for the Praying Mantis.

The Mantis is an adult so i am not sure if younger Mantis's eat aphids.

In conclusion it is my opinion that Adult Praying Mantis’s eat Lady Bugs and are not a good aphid fighter.

I think newly hatched mantids will eat aphids. Pretty sure they'd be too small for adult mantids.

OK i was not sure but i still feed Lucky i think it's kwel and am hopeful it will leave an egg sack.

I love them. Hoping any adults I have around will attack caterpillars, grasshoppers etc, and any babies take care of aphids.

INDEED!

Mine eat microwaved hotdogs.