The orchid mantis, which is believed to camouflage as flowers to attract its prey, does not actually mimic any flower. Smaller insects are normally attracted to the orchid mantis because of its attractive colors.
The orchid mantis is native to the rainforests of Indonesia and Malaysia but they are still rare. In plain sight, the creature is believed to resemble an orchid. Previous studies have suggested that the mantis has evolved to mimic the flower as a type of crypsis, which is the ability of an organism to go undetected in its surroundings.
Scientists once believed that the orchid mantis hides among the petals of the flower it resembles and feeds upon the insects that are attracted to the flower.
However, some scientists have also suggested that there is no evidence to determine this hypothesis. This mantis is quite rare and very little is known about its behavior. The orchid mantis is mainly observed in captivity.
Dr. James Gilbert, an insect evolutionary ecology expert at the University of Sussex, says that it is not known which exact flower the mantis mimics.
Even though the mantis stays near flowers, it does not mimic them or hide in them to attract prey. The bright colors of the mantis attract prey.
Dr. James O'Hanlon at the Macquarie University in Australia, for his part, conducted some tests to explain if the traditional views about the orchid mantis and its mimicry skill hold ground.
Dr. O'Hanlon suggests that the orchid mantis has very distinguished colors that do not resemble the colors of many flowers.
However, the orchid mantis was put alongside a flower more commonly found in its natural habitat. Dr. O'Hanlon claims that insects would often approach the mantis more than the flowers, which means that the mantis is attractive on its own.
"We can clearly observe insects, like bees, diverging from their flight paths and flying right towards this deceptive predator," said Dr. O'Hanlon.
The mantis also does not hide in flower petals. Instead, it chooses to sit in leaves as often as it sits in resembling flower petals. Dr. O'Hanlon also posits that the orchid mantis does not resemble any orchid species or even other flowers.
Experts believe that the orchid mantis exhibits colors of flowers that produce nectar, which makes it attractive to smaller insects on which it preys.
