Is it true that female praying mantises behead their partners?

A widely circulated myth suggests that female praying mantises are prone to violent, cannibalistic murder when approached by a potential mate. This tale, often shared in school classrooms with mantis terrariums, has become common knowledge even among children: Avoid mating with a female mantis, or risk becoming her meal.

This sounds terrifying, but is it factual? Do female mantises truly consume or behead their partners, or are they unfairly vilified by men who might overly identify with their insect counterparts? The answer lies in the diversity of the species. While many imagine a typical mantis as green, slender, and prayer-like, there are actually 2,400 species of mantises [source: Otte]. Some are vibrant, some are eerie, and yes, some are cannibalistic. Before delving into the sometimes brutal behavior of female mantises, let's explore the origins of this potential myth.

The myth, as it turns out, is rooted in scientific observation. In an 1886 article in the journal "Science," entomologist Leland Ossian Howard described how a female mantis, when paired with a male, methodically consumed his left leg, left eye, and right leg before decapitating and devouring his head. Remarkably, the male continued attempting to mate throughout the ordeal, which the female eventually allowed, despite his headless and nearly legless state. Howard noted that while he had never witnessed such behavior before, he emphatically stated, "It seems only by chance that a male ever survives the encounter with his mate" [source: Howard].

This observation might lead one to believe that female mantises are ruthless predators. However, it’s crucial to note that Howard witnessed this behavior only once, involving a specific species (Mantis carolina). Later, similar acts of decapitation or cannibalism were noted in Mantis religiosa, prompting further research into why such behavior might aid mating. Some hypotheses suggested that decapitation triggered sexual reflexes in the male’s abdomen or that certain thoracic regions suppressed these movements. Both ideas were eventually debunked [source: Crew].

The reality is this: While there are documented instances of female mantises cannibalizing and decapitating their partners, such behavior is far from the norm. A 1984 study published in "Animal Behavior" examined 40 mantis pairs and found that decapitation occurred in just one out of nearly 70 mating encounters [source: Liskë].

In conclusion, it’s time to retire the overused jokes about female mantises. Dating is challenging enough without being unfairly labeled as a man-eater.