False Garden Mantid - Pseudomantis albofimbriata

Family MANTIDAE

This page contains information and pictures about False Garden Mantids that we found in the Brisbane area, Queensland, Australia.


Female, body length 60mm

We sometimes found this False Garden Mantid hunting in our backyard. They are common in gardens in Brisbane.

There is a dark spot on inner side of each of its front arms. They are slow moving, with large abdomen. The females have their wings relatively small, covered only half of their abdomen, and do not seems able to fly. Males are fully winged but smaller in size.



Like all others mantids, False Garden Mantids have long thorax and strong spiny forelegs. They have the very mobile triangular shaped head with distinctive ocelli and large compound eyes. Their segmented antenna are medium to long in length.



We found two colour forms of the False Garden Mantids. They are either green or brown.



We found this brown young female adult on Feb 2012 near Simpson Falls in Brisbane.

Male False Garden Mantids are slender, smaller size and fully winged. Wings are long enough to cover the whole abdomen.


Male., body length 40mm

We found this male mantid in Karawatha Forest near the Lagoon. It was hunting on a milkweed plant. When we came closer, it flied to a few meter away and hided among dense grasses.

Praying Mantids development cycle is in-complete metamorphosis.


Body length 20mm


Body length 30mm


Body length 50mm



The above pictures shows different stages instars. Their wings are still in wing bubs form. Otherwise, they look the same as the adult mantids.


False Garden Mantid Ootheca - Mantids eggs case, 20x25mm

The above picture shows a Ootheca looked like a False Garden Mantid Ootheca.

Reference:
1. Insects of Australia, CSIRO, Division of Entomology, Melbourne University Press, 2nd Edition 1991, p 351.
2. Wildlife of Sydney - Fact File - False Garden Mantid - AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM 2006.
3. Grasshopper Country - the Abundant Orthopteroid Insects of Australia, D Rentz, UNSW Press, 1996 p242.
4. Northern Territory Insects, A Comprehensive Guide CD - Graham Brown, 2009.