>Taking the risk of being laughed at...I'd like to know if there is any
>fact to the story circulating about preying mantis predation on
>hummingbirds. I have a honeysuckle that is host to a 3 inch mantis and
>it perches near opened blossoms. That probably attracts insect
>pollinators but a tiny Calliope is possibly smaller than the mantis. Has
>anyone seen this predation? Would a hummer meet any of the mantis' food
>needs and could it kill a hummer?
>
>I've relocated the mantis several times but either I have several or
>that one returns. They are beneficial so I would not wish them gone.
>
>Joan Bergstrom, Pocatello, Id BERGJOAN at nicoh.com

I have no idea how many cases of this have been reported in the literature,
but I suspect it's a lot, as I've seen several such notes, some of them
referencing other articles. Yep, it does happen! Hummers also get caught
in spider webs or on prickly or gummy plants on occasion. When you're a
bird in the large-insect size category, life holds a few additional
hazards.

But of course it must be remembered that this is an aberrancy that is
written about just because it is so rare and unusual. 99.99+% of mantises
don't catch hummingbirds; 99.99+% of hummingbirds aren't caught by
mantises.

Dennis Paulson, Director phone 206-756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax 206-756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416