Subject: Mantis??
Location: Toronto, Canada
July 26, 2017 7:31 pm
Hello bugman!
It’s been a while since my last request, but here’s one for you. This was found inside here in Ontario, Canada, in August. It was about 1/2inch long with curiosly large pincers, a type or stage of mantis??
Thanks
Signature: Kyle
Dear Kyle,
As its common name implies, this Mantispid or Mantisfly does bear an uncanny resemblance to its namesake, however, Mantispids are classified with Lacewings and Antlions as Neuropterans, and they are not even closely related to Mantids. They have evolved to have similar appearances because of the way they hunt. Based on BugGuide images, we believe your Mantispid is Leptomantispa pulchella.