On the ground, brown dead-leaf mantids disappear among the dry leaf litter. Other mantids increase their chances of catching a meal by perching on or near a flower head where insects are likely to visit. As juveniles, their coloring may even match the color of the flower. The flower mantid of southeastern Asia is white if it develops on a white flower, pink if it develops on a pink flower. Unable to sustain strong flight, mantids do not take prey while on the wing but will hang upsidedown from branches or cling to grasses as they patiently wait for their next meal to come along.
Mantids spring into action from their well-camouflaged state when their keen vision has been piqued.
Large compound eyes dominate the relatively small triangular head and provide excellent stereoscopic vision. Three simple eyes, or ocelli, which resemble tiny marbles, are located between the large eyes and provide ancillary visual information aiding in the discrimination of light and dark. Thanks to its highly mobile head, which can turn through more than 180 degrees, a mantid can readily spot any movement. The precision and coordination necessary for a mantid to capture its prey comes from a combination of acute binocular vision and a series of stiff hairs located on its neck. The eyes operate in tandem, combining the images they receive and enabling the mantid to fixate on an object.