The Praying Mantis (Mantis Religiosa)ContentIntroductory course First of all Key characteristics Basic characteristics Diet and fighting style Reproduction Growth and development Self-defense Cultural importance Praying mantis Kung-FuINTRODUCTION "Mantis "religious" is the commonly used name used in English-speaking countries for a large, very elongated, slow-moving insect with forelegs equipped to grasp and hold insect prey. The name "Praying Mantis" more correctly refers to the specific species of Mantis Mantis Religiosa or the European Mantis, but is usually used more generally to refer to any member of the Mantis family. The name is derived from the praying position in which the insect holds its long, jointed front legs when resting or waiting for prey. It is also called the praying mantis because of its predatory nature. CLASSES Many questions have arisen regarding the praying mantis. These questions include how many different species exist in the animal kingdom. Estimates vary between 1,500 and 2,200 different mantis species worldwide. The most common figure given, however, is around 1800. How Mantises are classified in the animal kingdom. There is consensus that the collection of mantid species constitutes the insect family Mantidae. The family Mantidae, on the other hand, is part of the order/suborder Mantodea which includes a variety of mantid-like species. But the existing literature does not reflect a clear consensus on which order of insects the Mantodea belong to. Some have placed the Mantodea in the order Dictyoptera, along with the cockroaches. Others place Mantodea in the order Orthoptera, with crickets and grasshoppers. Finally, some believe that the Mantodea constitute their own independent order of insects. There appears to be an emerging consensus around this position. FIRST THINGS FIRST The Mantis Religiosa was so named and first classified by the inventor of the modern system of biological taxonomy Carolus Linnaeus. The three common species of mantis in North America are the European mantis (Mantis religiosa), the Chinese mantis (Tenodera aridifolia sinensis), and the Carolina mantis (Stagmomantis carolina). three, reaching lengths of three to five inches. The European mantis, however, is a bit small...... middle of paper...... while the search for food and existence has not revealed its secrets to us, we would never develop this new style." The abbot replied: "You are right! In order to perpetuate the memory of the source, we will call this style "The Gates of the Praying Mantis" (Tang Lang Men). Wang Lang and the abbot developed twelve characters - guiding principles of the praying mantis combat technique: zhan (contact), nian (stick), bang (bind), tie (press), lai (intrusion), jiao (provoke), avoid (advance), song ( sending), ti (lift), na (grasp), feng (block), bi (lock) They have also developed formal sets of praying mantis techniques, such as: Beng bu (crush step), Lan jie. (obstruction), Ba zhou (eight elbows), Mei hua lu (plum blossom technique) and Bai yuan tou tao (white monkey steals peach. However, this new style has long been a privilege of Taoist monks of). the Taoist religious community of Lao Shan and it was kept as part of the secret Taoist doctrine and closed to the laity. Wang Lang, for the rest of his days, lived in the Taoist temple, practicing self-cultivation, developing Praying Mantis boxing, and following the way of the Tao...."