Humans are not the only creatures who make the promise of ‘loving till death’. In the praying mantis world, this phrase takes quite a literal meaning.
After mating, female mantises eat their partners. This paradoxical behavior perplexes many of us. So, if you’re mind-boggled by the fact and trying to find out why this happens, you’re at the right place!
Well, in this post, we’ll dive deep and find out every inch of information available on why sexual cannibalism occurs in mantises. Let’s start by understanding the term – sexual cannibalism.
Table of Contents
- Sexual Cannibalism
- Why Does Female Praying Mantis Eat The Male?
- Why Did This Behavior Evolve?
- Do Female Praying Mantises Always Eat Their Partner?
- How Do Male Mantises Avoid Being Eaten Post-mating?
- Summary
Sexual Cannibalism
Sexual cannibalism is the phenomenon in which some female organisms devour their male partners before, during, or after mating. This trait has been witnessed in several arachnoids and insects.
Scientists have long speculated a few hypotheses on why this phenomenon occurs. The reasons behind and the advantageous outcomes vary depending upon the species.
In a recent study, it has been found sexual cannibalism benefits female mantis’s fecundity. In the upcoming section, we’ll dissect why sexual cannibalism occurs in mantises in detail.
Why Does Female Praying Mantis Eat The Male?
In a research paper published in 2016, it has been found that in praying mantises Tenodera sinensis, eggs and reproductive tissues in females who fed on their partner interestingly had much more male-derived amino acid in comparison to those females who let their mates live.
Also, in this study, where around 50% of mantis couples displayed sexual cannibalism, cannibalistic females produced more eggs relatively.
Thus, as male somatic tissues evidently partake in increasing the fecundity of females and invest significantly in offspring, around 63% of female mantis’ diets consist of male partners during breeding seasons.
Moreover, this study has proved that the male somatic investment allocation to female mantis’ eggs and ovaries increases with the increasing size of the males.
Also, just as in Tenodera sinensis, the other two mantis species Hierodula membranaceaandPseudomantis albofimbriata, have displayed a significant increase in females’ fecundity.
So, as cruel as it might sound, it might be a good idea for male mantises to get eaten by their mate, at least from an evolutionary point of view. Mantises have a short lifespan, of just a few months. So, even if they die, their DNA lives on in their healthy offspring.
Why Did This Behavior Evolve?
Evolutionary beneficial behaviors are often always encouraged and evolved. So, sexual cannibalism also might have some advantageous reasons backing it up.
Here are four hypothesized explanations on why sexual cannibalism occurs. A few of them suggest that males pay the price in order to ensure better survival for its offsprings.
In contrast, one suggests that sexual cannibalism solely depends upon a female organism’s aggressiveness level. Let’s dive deep to understand the probable evolutionary reasons behind sexual cannibalism occurs.
1. Adaptive foraging hypothesis
Adaptive foraging hypothesis proposes that female organisms of sexually cannibalistic species have poor physical conditions and prefer cannibalizing males for better survival and fecundity to mating them.
Females devour mates for better nutrients and additional energy required for successful and improved egg development including, larger egg cases.
Hungry females cannibalize smaller genetically inferior males in some species and then copulate with healthy and genetically strong males.
Like almost any other scientific hypothesis, the adaptive foraging hypothesis is not devoid of criticisms either. Scientists have found that these male species are nutritionally not as rich as crickets.
However, in a sexually cannibalistic spider species, Hogna helluo, males have been found to contain various important proteins and lipids, beneficial for female’s fecundity, that other prey such as crickets lack.
2. Mate choice hypothesis
According to this hypothesis, dating is a scary process for males in cannibalistic species. Females cannibalize those males who they deem unfit for them.
Smaller males, who are often cannibalized, display a lower level of aggressiveness and fitness, i.e., they are weak and are deemed genetically weak. Thus, in many species, males impress their to-be mating partners with higher hostility and courtship dances.
In an orb-weaver spider, Leucauge mariana, females devour their partners if their sexual performance is poor and the sperm count is too low.
So, the mate choice hypothesis implicates that if a female doesn’t find the male trying to impress her for copulation fit for her fecundity, she will cannibalize them and mate with a fitter and often a bigger partner instead.
3. Aggressive spillover hypothesis
According to the aggressive spillover hypothesis, the more the female is hostile and fast when attacking prey, the more are the chances of her cannibalizing the mating partner.
To be more precise, unlike some other hypotheses where sexual cannibalism is considered to be of advantage to female organisms as the genetically superior males are supported, this hypothesis implicates that it totally depends upon the female aggression that determines if or not the female devours their partners.
This hypothesis further suggests that such cannibalistic aggressiveness in females decreases in a female-dominated environment, as there’s a competition to find a viable mate in such environments, and such hostile behavior might result in repulsing the males.
4. Mistaken identity hypothesis
Unlike the above hypotheses, the mistaken identity hypothesis suggests that females cannibalize the males, often pre-mating, without having any prior knowledge of their sexual capabilities.
In this case, a female fails to realize that the male around her is trying to court her. One can witness this behavior in insects with prevalent pre-mating sexual cannibalism. The female doesn’t allow males to offer a courtship dance and attacks and cannibalizes them instead.
Do Female Praying Mantises Always Eat Their Partner?
Many believe that praying mantises’ love stories always end up in a macabre. However, that’s just a rumor, and many male mantises live long enough to mate and pass their DNA to offspring with more than one female mantis.
Many scientists claim that it simply depends upon the hunger level of the females. In an experiment conducted in 1994, where the males were introduced to well-fed and starved female mantises.
The result of the experiment was found to be different from what was believed. Only starved female mantises were found to involve in cannibalism.
As per the male investment in female eggs and reproductive tissue, it was found to be impressive, despite sexual cannibalism not being involved.
So, as male mantises are one of the biggest prays they feed on, large starving females are found to cannibalize, with or without any sexual activity between them.
Also, a two-year-long study conducted by an Entomology student of the University of Central Arkansan, Kyle Hurley, found that only one in 45 cases involved sexual cannabilism, where the females first decapitated their mates pre-mating. The majority of cannibalized males were small.
Moreover, another mind-blowing observation was that in one in 45 cases, males cannibalized females instead. So, a variety of factors seems to be playing a role in mantis cannabilism.
However, one thing is certain that, unlike the popular notion, sexual cannabilism is not 100% mandatory action in mantises.
How Do Male Mantises Avoid Being Eaten Post-mating?
Not every male mantises are evolved to be a martyr. Some try to and indeed escape their decapitation during the romance. There are a few ways by which the males try to do so.
1. Undetected introduction
In a praying mantid species, Pseudomantis albofimbrata, males are often witnessed to approach their possible female mates by slowly approaching them from the front or slowly mounting them from the back.
2. Opportunistic mating
In a study performed in Australian mantis, P. ablbofimbrata, a few cases of opportunistic mating were also observed.
Opportunistic mating is when the male waits for the females to be distracted or well-fed before copulation. In this type of avoiding mechanism, males in many species are also known to present distracting gifts to females in order to prolong copulation.
3. Violent struggles
In order to escape their partner’s cannibalistic behavior, males pin down their mates to violent struggles. This strategy is believed to be recently evolved among male mantises in the scientific community.
Males strike the females with speed and strength and grab them with their serrated raptorial forelegs before female mantises attack them. According to a study, when the males did so, they stood a 78% chance of survival.
If the wrestle is more violent and the males are able to inflict deeper wounds to females, then the likelihood skyrocketed to 100%.
So, if we look at all these male defence mechanisms, and the fact that males are at a clear loss during sexual cannibalism, it seems like this phenomenon is a female-plotted strategy.
Summary
Many humans believe loving is painful. And it seems like many male mantises would also agree to this notion.
By now, we know what the possible reasons why female mantises devour their beloved partners are. We also know that their love story doesn’t always end in tragedy as males try their best to fight for their life.
So, the next time you see a mantis couple, realize that their relationship also has its fair share of struggles, like every other relationship on this planet.
FAQs
Why do female praying mantises feed upon their mates? ›
A study published in 2016 found that when female Chinese mantises consume their mates, they acquire important amino acids that are then incorporated into the eggs they lay. They also appear to lay twice as many eggs after cannibalizing a male than they normally would.
Does female mantis eat male? ›It's not true, as many people think, that female praying mantids always devour their mates. Only a few of the 180 mantid species engage in this shocking practice, and not always under natural conditions.
Why do male praying mantis allow themselves to be eaten? ›From a female mantid's point of view, eating her male is a good move. It not only gives her a great meal, it also means she can have more offspring and they will be more likely to survive. However, from the male's point of view, he won't be able to have more offspring in the future if he is, well, eaten.
What does a female praying mantis do after mating? ›Mantis Mating | Wildlife On One: Enter The Mantis | BBC Earth - YouTube
Does a praying mantis spit in your eye? ›This belief may come from an idea that a praying mantis can spit a poison at you, but this is not true. Walking stick insects on the other hand can emit a defensive spray that can be painful if it gets in your eyes.
Do mantis bites hurt? ›Unless you happen to be an insect or a small amphibian, praying mantis are not dangerous. They aren't venomous and, though their bites may be a little painful, they won't cause any lasting harm. You are also highly unlikely to suffer any kind of allergic reaction from a praying mantis bite.
Can male mantis survive mating? ›There is a 78% chance for males to survive after mating if he gets to draw and grab the female with its serrated raptorial forelegs first before the female attacks. Plus, if they managed to injure the female's abdomen they could keep their head every time.
What comes out of a praying mantis when it dies? ›The worm is believed to be a horsehair worm or Nematomorpha
It shows a man spraying a praying mantis with pesticide, killing it instantly, only to see seconds later a huge worm bursting out of the body of the dead insect and wriggling across the floor.
"They just hold [their prey], and they eat them while they are still alive, slowly and slowly until there is nothing left," he says.
What's the biggest thing a praying mantis can eat? ›Measurements of their reflexes show they react more than 2 times quicker than houseflies. Mantis have enormous appetites, eating various aphids, leafhoppers, mosquitoes, caterpillars and other soft-bodied insects when young. Later they will eat larger insects, beetles, grasshoppers, crickets, and other pest insects.
What animal dies after mating? ›
Male kalutas, small mouselike marsupials found in the arid regions of Northwestern Australia, are semelparous, meaning that shortly after they mate, they drop dead. This extreme reproductive strategy is rare among vertebrates —only a few dozen are known to reproduce in this fashion, and most of them are fish.
Does a praying mantis have two brains? ›The brain of the praying mantis is characterized by large OLs, slender optic stalks, and a relatively small central brain (Figure 1a). The neuropils of the two OLs contribute most to the volume of the mantis protocerebrum.
Why do mantis bite heads off? ›Though it sounds very strange, this fact is true. When a female mates with a male praying mantis she may bite off his head. In fact, she may bite off and eat his head, legs, and other parts of his body. This is part of the reason why praying mantises have a reputation for being aggressive insects.
Does a female praying mantis eat the male after mating? ›Its mating behaviour is widely known: The bigger adult female devours the male after, or sometimes during, the mating process, for nutrition. This behaviour doesn't seem to deter males from reproduction. It does make them wary of the female's size and strength at times.
Do praying mantis eat other praying mantis? ›Female praying mantises are famous for attacking and cannibalising their mates during or after a sexual encounter, but evidence is emerging that some males attack too, and that winning a fight is crucial for successful mating.
Can a praying mantis hurt you? ›Praying mantis are not very harmful insects. However, they can hurt you with their front legs and mouth.
Do praying mantis eat their babies? ›Those tiny, newly minted baby praying mantises get started right away in the ways of evil. If there's nothing else good to eat, they will eat their new siblings. The state of Connecticut has made the praying mantis its State Insect.