Chinese Praying Mantis (Ootheca)

Found in gardens, meadows, and shrubbery across North America and Asia.

Nymphs emerge to eat small insects; adults are generalist predators of insects and even small vertebrates.

The female lays eggs in a frothy liquid that hardens into a protective, papery mass (ootheca) to overwinter.

Beneficial to gardens as natural pest control, though they may also consume other beneficial insects like pollinators.