Spiny Flower Mantis

The spiny flower mantis is a small, vividly marked species native to sub-Saharan Africa, known for the bold, concentric eyespot pattern on its forewings and the spiny projections along its thorax and abdomen. Its coloration, typically pale green or cream with patterns of brown, black, and yellow, allows it to blend convincingly among flowers and foliage where it waits for prey.

This species inhabits savanna and woodland shrubland, perching on flowering plants where its color pattern doubles as both camouflage and a defensive startle display. When threatened, it raises its abdomen and spreads its wings to expose the large eyespot markings, a bluff intended to make it appear larger or more threatening to a would-be predator.

• Small body, roughly 3-4 cm at maturity, with a triangular head and large compound eyes
• Forewings display a bold, concentric eyespot pattern in shades of cream, brown, and black
• Body coloration ranges from pale green to yellowish-cream, aiding camouflage among flowers
• Small spiny projections along the edges of the thorax and abdomen
• Females are generally bulkier than the more slender males
• Distinguished from other flower mantises by the distinctive paired eyespot wing pattern used in its startle display

Native to eastern and southern Africa, including countries such as South Africa, Mozambique, and Kenya, the spiny flower mantis inhabits savanna, open woodland, and shrubland, often found perched on flowering plants and shrubs. It is most active during the warmer months when flowering vegetation and insect prey are abundant.

This species is an ambush predator that waits motionless among flowers or foliage, using its cryptic coloration to go unnoticed by both prey and predators, before striking at small flying insects such as flies and moths with its raptorial front legs. When threatened, it performs a deimatic, or startle, display by rearing back, spreading its wings, and exposing the prominent eyespot markings, sometimes accompanied by a hissing sound produced by rubbing body parts together. As a predator of small insects, it contributes to natural pest regulation within its habitat while also serving as prey for birds and larger insectivores.

Females produce a compact, foam-like ootheca that hardens around dozens of eggs, typically attached to a twig or stem. Nymphs hatch resembling small, wingless versions of adults and pass through a series of molts, developing wing pads and eventually functional wings and reproductive maturity at the final molt. There is no pupal stage, consistent with a mantis's incomplete metamorphosis, and development from hatching to adulthood generally spans a few months depending on temperature and food availability.