A favorite picture

BjornBee · October 27, 2008, 02:50:26 PM

This is a picture I have shown other beekeepers in the past. It is a picture from last year.

My wife commented after I had shown her the praying mantis hanging out on the hummingbird feeder "I hope they don't harm hummingbird"

I said it was probably after an occasional bee or fly at the sugar water. And they could not possibly harm a hummingbird.

This happened the next afternoon. I thought I captured a once in a million chance, but if you google "Praying mantis eats hummingbird" or "praying mantis captures hummingbird", you can see others who have captured a photo of the same thing.

Shawn · October 27, 2008, 03:41:10 PM

Seems like the hummingbird is too big of something to catch. Amazing that the mantis can hold the bird up!

KONASDAD · October 27, 2008, 03:49:26 PM

amazing photo

poka-bee · October 27, 2008, 08:00:04 PM

Did it eat the poor thing? You would think that the hummer could wriggle & flap pulling out some feathers in the process to get away... :( We don't have the mantis here on this side of the mts...too wet I think. Looks like a big female! J

BjornBee · October 27, 2008, 08:49:09 PM

Quote from: poka-bee on October 27, 2008, 08:00:04 PM
Did it eat the poor thing? You would think that the hummer could wriggle & flap pulling out some feathers in the process to get away... :( We don't have the mantis here on this side of the mts...too wet I think. Looks like a big female! J

Yes. It was a good ways along, perhaps 1/3 of the hummingbird's body gone. I did break it up and was amazed that a full size praying mantis is actually much heavier than the hummingbird.

johnnybigfish · October 27, 2008, 08:54:29 PM

Man, Thats a clear picture!!
I've never imagined a mantis could do that!
We have some here but I dont think they get that big! We have walking sticks so big that a person can make a fishing pole with!!

your friend,
john

poka-bee · October 27, 2008, 09:21:08 PM

Oh MY! I never knew they could do that! Maybe the poor hummer dies of shock? They don't have venom. They are an amazing predator. I order em from Planet Natural in the spring & let most go, keep a few in a terrarium for fun. They are like Highlander..there can be only 1. It's creepy when they sight in on you & follow your movements...guess they would try & eat us if we gave em the chance! :shock:

Irwin · October 29, 2008, 10:50:24 AM

The one's here in Lakeside are from 3 to 4 inch's I like to watch them eat.

Scadsobees · October 29, 2008, 02:30:12 PM

They are creepy things. I'm sure thankful that they are only up to 4 inches!!

I'm amazed at how nonchalant they are when they grab a grasshopper...they pin the grass hopper down so he can't struggle much, then start slowly munching on whatever is closest to their mouth! Tips of their toes, wings, whatever. It would be like a bear pinning me down and starting to eat me at my toes!!! Argghhhh!

thomashton · October 31, 2008, 07:08:31 PM

Quote from: Scadsobees on October 29, 2008, 02:30:12 PM
It would be like a bear pinning me down and starting to eat me at my toes!!!

You just disturbed me more than you'll ever know.

Brian D. Bray · October 31, 2008, 07:55:04 PM

Quote from: Scadsobees on October 29, 2008, 02:30:12 PM
They are creepy things. I'm sure thankful that they are only up to 4 inches!!

It would be like a bear pinning me down and starting to eat me at my toes!!! Argghhhh!

I'm being swallowed by a boa constricter, a boa constricter.
Oh no, he's up to my toes.
Oh fangle he swallowed my ankle.
Gee, he's now up to my knee.

Comments can sometimes trigger wierd memories....like the lyrics from an Old Johnny Cash song.

2-Wheeler · October 31, 2008, 10:44:59 PM

Wow, that is too amazing for words. I wouldn't have believed it without seeing your picture. We've had some 3-4" mantis around here this fall but I never thought they could eat a humming bird. I'd rather they go after the field mice!

It's scary yes, but for beekeepers this little pest is even worse:
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dbroberg/2729048274/" >

</a>
These little "Assassin bugs" (reduviidae) hide out on the flowers that the bees are using and sneak up on the unsuspecting bee and capture them, sucking the life out of them slowly.

Now maybe I can get the praying mantis to eat the assassin bugs!

JP · October 31, 2008, 11:21:11 PM

Wow, didn't think a mantis would do that, but they are pretty bad lil suckers though.

Check this out, a spider catches and eats a bird: http://www.news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=651337

...JP

BjornBee · October 31, 2008, 11:40:19 PM

Neat photo of the spider. I read a story once about some spider (Amazon??) that cast webs and could catch fish. Not sure if it's true.

I have those assassin bugs hanging out around the hives all the time. Nasty things. I know there are many varieties of them. This is the most common here.....

JP · October 31, 2008, 11:54:29 PM

The ones we have down here look like this: http://bugguide.net/node/view/176673/bgpage

...JP

BjornBee · November 01, 2008, 12:04:01 AM

Quote from: JP on October 31, 2008, 11:54:29 PM
The ones we have down here look like this: http://bugguide.net/node/view/176673/bgpage

...JP

That's Cajun Hot!

2-Wheeler · November 02, 2008, 01:19:23 AM

The spider shot was also amazing. Did anyone dress up as a praying mantis for Halloween? It could be a scary costume. Here is one I caught by my garage a few weeks ago:
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/dbroberg/2866280841/" >

</a>

Cindi · November 02, 2008, 10:56:49 AM

Holy smoking cadoodalhoppers!!!! Those pictures of the predator things are simply AMAZING!!! BjornBee, look that a thread you have started!!! I am amazed at what amazing abilities these predators of unsuspecting critters have. Their ability to get their food, from the unsuspecting suspect. Amazing. It is kind of annoying though, to think that such lovely things can be eaten all up, alive, to say the least. Oh well, there is such a mountain of things that must be eaten to keep the chain of life alive. Have a most wonderful and awesome day, great health. Cindi

Cheryl · June 29, 2009, 11:57:41 AM

:-D :-D Bump! :-D :-D

Those assassin bugs are crazy. We have them around here that like to feast on HUMAN blood, and they breed in pack-rat middens. We call them "Kissing Bugs" because you hardly feel them. Their saliva is toxic and accumulative. I get a welt the size of a quarter.* Some people are severely allergic. I know a man who barely made it -- he was airlifted from our neighborhood, then spent 8 days in a coma. :shock:

*It's been a while since I've been bitten by one, since our area has become more suburban, fewer pack rat middens for over a mile radius. We keep our pack-rat populations down around our property for a variety of reasons -- mostly because of the damage they do to property and vehicles (hundreds of dollars damage to vehicle wiring in engine compartments!).

Kathyp · June 29, 2009, 12:04:14 PM

QuoteWe don't have the mantis here on this side of the mts...too wet I think. Looks like a big female!

don't you? i have some. not common and not so big, but i find them around from time to time.