Subject: Bug or fossil?
Geographic location of the bug: Saw Washington state
Date: 02/19/2018
Time: 02:08 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman: I have no idea what this is. It was found in Southwest Washington state and is the second one we found. The first one was a couple months ago this one was just found a couple days ago (that would be early February). At first I thought it was a fossil but now I’m not so sure. If you can’t tell me what it is do you know who I might ask that’s local to Southwest Washington?
How you want your letter signed: M.c.hlousek
Dear M.c.hlousek,
This is the ootheca or egg case of a Preying Mantis, but we cannot say for certain if it is a native species or a species introduced for agricultural purposes. When conditions are correct, you should expect young mantids to hatch and begin hunting.