The praying mantis is a fascinating and entertaining bug to keep in the garden or on the farm. It is the only bug known to be able to spin its head and see behind it. Mantis lay in wait for their prey, then snap it up with a quick movement of their powerful forelegs when it gets near enough. Their reflexes have been measured to be more than 2 times faster than houseflies. When they're young, mantis devour numerous aphids, leafhoppers, mosquitoes, caterpillars, and other soft-bodied insects. Larger insects, such as beetles, grasshoppers, crickets, and other problem insects, will be eaten later.

 Praying mantis is a general predator of most problem insects, mites, eggs, and any other bug in its path. Around 200 baby mantids are included in each egg case. Use three cases per 5,000 square feet, or ten to one hundred cases per acre every year. Twigs, leaves, fences, and other plants attract it. Egg cases of praying mantis can also be put in the crotch of a shrub or tree. If you leave them on the ground, they will become easy prey for ants. After the final frost, releases can begin and continue throughout the summer.

The praying mantis gets its name from its large front legs, which are bowed and clasped together at an angle resembling a prayer position. The praying mantis is the formal name for the wider group of these insects. Mantis is the name given to the genus Mantis, which includes just a few species of praying mantis. These beautiful insects, by any name, are powerful predators. They feature a long "neck," or extended thorax, with triangular heads. With two huge complex eyes and three basic eyes situated between them, mantis can spin their heads 180 degrees to survey their environment. Mantis, which are typically green or brown in color and well disguised on the plants they dwell among, wait in ambush or slowly hunt their prey. They propel themselves forward using their front legs.

Interesting behavior

After or during mating, the mature female normally consumes the male. Because the mantis' clutching reflex is so quick, you can see it before it captures the bug and while it is in its front legs. If the motion is detected at all, it is barely a blur.

Images and colors can be seen by the compound eyes. The three basic eyes may be able to distinguish between light and darkness. Between the antennae, the basic eyes are positioned in a triangle. Compound eyes have hundreds of facets and are made up of two lenses. The light is focused on a light-sensitive structure (rhabdome) coupled to the optic nerve by these lenses.

Reference

https://www.buglogical.com/praying-mantis/