Fun insect for school kids turns out to be first record of species in Vidarbha

NAGPUR: A strange stick-like insect that fascinated some school kids at Kurmalguda, in Bhamragarh district of Naxal-infested Gadchiroli, turned out to be the first recorded sighting of the ‘Praying Mantis’in Vidarbha.
Dr Ashish Tiple, head, department of zoology at Vidyabharati College, Selu (Wardha), identified the mantis as Gongylus Gongylodes (scientific name).Its common name is wandering violin mantis. “This species is being reported in Vidarbha region for the first time,” said Dr Tiple.
Dr SS Jadhav, scientist and expert on mantis with Zoological Society of India (ZSI), Hyderabad, too endorsed that the praying mantis is Gongylus Gongylodes. “In Vidarbha it may be the first sighting, but the mantis is recorded in Western Maharashtra,” Dr Jadhav told TOI.
Dr Jadhav adds that the wandering violin mantis is one of the most amazing mantis species. It is a large mantis with amazing camouflage. Its body has a lot of appendages that look like dried leaves, and its body is long and thin to resemble a wooden stick.
Dr Tiple also contacted a group of taxonomists abroad, who confirmed the species, including Denmark’s Morten P Andersen.
Mantis are predatory insects and play a vital role in terrestrial ecosystems. “Praying mantis are a remarkable group of raptoria or snatchers. The name is appropriate, since it comes from their habit of holding the front legs up in a praying attitude while waiting for prey,” says Dr Tiple.
The mantis intently watch and stalk their prey, and feed almost wholly upon insects, which may include most of the pests from butterflies, moths, cockroaches, grasshoppers to aphids.
Globally, some 2,300 species belonging to 434 genera and 15 families of mantis are known to occur. India too has a diverse range of mantis with 169 species in 71 genera. Its distribution is recorded in Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. Globally, it is found in Java, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
Tiple says he recently reported 23 species of mantis belonging to 15 genera, 13 subfamilies and 7 families in Vidarbha region. “Of these, six species were reported for the first time from Vidarbha. This research has been submitted to Journal of Threatened Taxa for publication,” says Tiple.