Tenodera sinensis
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
The Chinese mantis (Tenodera sinensis), is a species of mantis native to temperate Asia and the nearby islands. In 1896, this species was accidentally introduced by a nursery tender at Mt. Airy, a neighborhood of Philadelphia, United States. T. sinensis often is erroneously referred to as Tenodera aridifolia sinensis because it was at first described as a subspecies of Tenodera aridifolia, but T. sinensis is now established as a full species.
T. sinensis feeds primarily on other large insects, though adult females sometimes catch small vertebrates. For example, they have been observed feeding on hornets, spiders, grasshoppers, katydids, small reptiles, amphibians, and even hummingbirds. Like most mantids, they are known to be cannibalistic. One study found that cannibalism occurs in up to 50% of matings. These mantids have been observed eating the larvae of monarch butterflies, while discarding the entrails.
The Chinese mantis is a long, slender, brown and green praying mantis. It is typically longer than other praying mantis species, reaching just over 11 cm (4.3 in), and is the largest mantis species in North America (spread throughout the Northeast United States... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Point Pelee National Park | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 2 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Chinese Mantis sighting in Nanjing on a given day, based on 27 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 40th most-seen of the 272 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
August
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Chinese Mantis in Nanjing on a given day, against under 5% in December to May, the lowest months. That is one of Nanjing's wettest months, with about 160 mm of rain against 40 mm in December.
Between noon and 3 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Chinese Mantis sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
12th of 31
Of the 31 cities where we can rate Chinese Mantis sightings, Nanjing ranks 12th at about 10%. The best odds are in Nagoya (Japan, about 30%), Detroit (United States, about 20%) and Hefei (China, about 20%).
Same family: Mantidae
The closest relatives of the Chinese Mantis that you can see in Nanjing (family Mantidae, Mantids) are Giant Asian Mantis (about 20%) and Asian Jumping Mantis (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Chinese Mantis is recorded against all the insects logged in Nanjing (27 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
