What is this thing?
 

http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j2...0/DSC02612.jpg
it was about 4-5 inches long and was definitely not a grasshopper, unless grasshoppers can hiss and be larger than a cell phone

praying mantis

praying mantis

theyre illegal to kill

yep they be endangered

yea, like they said, but for an endanged thing, i sure see plenty

They're not endangered and they're not illegal to kill. There are no state or federal laws on the books stating that. It's an old wives tale.

wtf... in that case im killing the next 4 i see.... yes, 4, and only 4

care of wiki..."Only one Spanish species, Apteromantis aptera, is listed as Lower Risk/Near Threatened. With one exception (the ground mantis Litaneutria minor in Canada, where it is rare - though it is common in the United States), North American mantises are not included among threatened or endangered species, though species in other parts of the world are under threat from habitat destruction. The European mantis (Mantis religiosa) is the state insect of Connecticut, but the General Statutes of Connecticut do not list any special protected status, as it is a non-native species from Europe and Northern Africa."

when i was s korea i had one hunting me, and at night it was hard to not to walk 10 feet with stepping on one

it is also a fighting style in japan. :D

The females also eat the head of the male after mating with them for nurishment for her soon-coming young.

Nice bugs though. They won't bite humans or anything. They usually just kinda hang out.

crap

well i wasnt certainly the only one that thought so. i remember growing up and being told they were endangered and illegal to kill.

question long asked by me and yet to be answered= WHAT DO THEY PRAY FOR?!?!!?!?

my friends response= mantis's

girlfriends response= their male mate


GIVE ME A REAL DAMN RESPONSE!



and theyt are all over the place...me my friend and my gf caught one in my friends garage last weekend lol.

What's the USPS have to do with you being a male?

theyre just known for their prayer like stance...in reality i think theyre athiests

cool as hell....they're harmless to humans. I've picked up Mantis' that are that size and larger. They don't bite. You could let it sit on your shoulder like a parrot without a problem. They are docile, unless you are a bug. If you find one put it in your vegetable garden or favorite tree and you'll never have to worry about pests.

along with the drunken cow

yo upon closer look, thats a freaking bear!!

LoL at drunken cow haha

Thats an interesting fact to know, ha ha ha. I remember hearing that its a $50 fine if you are caught extinguishing the life of the praying mantis.

Did you.....? NOOOOO! WHYYYYYYY????????? OH THE HUMANITY!!!!!!!!!!!

No really, did you kill it?

He's Arab..what else is new.

Like mentioned, they're not aggressive, eat MANY major pest in gardens and flower bed. Dunno if they're illegal in NJ (or anywhere else), but they get to be close to a foot long in some places. Definitely nothing wrong with them. Rather have them around than not.....

Those things WILL bite a human. When they are pissed off, get the hell away from them. I have seen people get bitten by a mantis, mostly because the were messing with them.

no i did kill it. mostly because i didn't know what it was. fear of the unknown drives people to do crazy things. it was actually in that position on our screen door for about 3 days and my mother was scared to open the door. sorry to all the save the insect people out there.