Monster Mantis

Once in a while we meet a neighbor creature we didn’t know existed. This praying mantis appeared tonight on our house door, at least four inches long. Its belly was emerald green, and its eyes two shiny black balls. Mantises are voracious predators; they usually capture other insects, but are known to catch lizards and even snakes.

In the past, when the Earth was warmer and oxygen levels much higher, insects grew as large as seagulls. Who knows, with impending climate change insects may once again rule the Earth.