page_title: Orthodera novaezealandiae
section_title: Description
hierarchical_section_title: Orthodera novaezealandiae / Description
caption_attribution_description: Female New Zealand Praying Mantis (Orthodera novaezealandiae)
context_page_description: Orthodera novaezealandiae, known as the New Zealand mantis or the New Zealand praying mantis, is a species of praying mantis which is, as both the scientific name and common names suggest, indigenous and endemic to New Zealand.
context_section_description: O. novaezealandiae nymphs are pale, translucent green with a dark stripe running from head to end of abdomen. As adults, they are bright green and grow to between 35 mm and 40 mm in length.(see note ) As in most mantis species, sexual dimorphism means the female is larger.
  The New Zealand mantis has a triangular head with slightly oversized compound eyes that give it excellent binocular vision (although they do have a blind spot). Its wings differ from those of other species in the "development of the archedictyon and the absence of cross-veins in the forewing".
  "A very active little Mantis", O. novaezealandiae is well adapted as a predator. Its specialized forelimbs are long and equipped with extremely sharp spikes to trap prey. Blue eyespots on the underside of the insect's forelegs helps in differentiating this species from Miomantis caffra, an introduced species from South Africa that became established in New Zealand during the 1970s.
  The ootheca of the New Zealand mantis has eggs arranged in two rows, quite different from the messier egg mass of Miomantis caffra. Oothecae are generally arranged facing north towards the sun, on the warm faces of branches and tree trunks.
caption: Female viewed from above
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