High-speed photograph of a male praying mantis in flight. The mantids and the dragonflies were the first flying insects to appear on Earth. Their musc

---

High-speed photograph of a male praying mantis in flight. The mantids and the dragonflies were the first flying insects to appear on Earth. Their muscles are much less efficient than those of other insects; their wings beat only four times per second, whereas the mosquito beats its wings around 1000 times per second. The mantis is a daytime hunter, with a voracious & indiscriminate appetite for insects, lizards, frogs and even small birds.

---

Size: 5014px × 3559px
Photo credit: © CLAUDE NURIDSANY & MARIE PERENNOU/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: animal, flight, insect, insecta, invertebrate, invertebrates, mantis, nature, praying, wildlife, zoology