Praying Mantis Egg Case (Ootheca)

Found attached to twigs, branches, fences, and walls in gardens, meadows, and shrublands.

Eggs do not eat; nymphs and adults are carnivorous, eating insects and occasionally small vertebrates.

The female produces a frothy liquid that hardens into a protective, papery case to insulate eggs through winter; hundreds of nymphs emerge in spring.

No risk to humans; highly beneficial to ecosystems and gardeners as biological pest control.