Magical Mantis Moments

Aug 28, 2023

It was a "Magical Mantis Kind of Day" when the Bohart Museum of Entomology hosted an open house last Sunday afternoon, Aug. 27, on praying mantises.

  • Tabatha Yang, the Bohart Museum's education and outreach coordinator, wore a green mantis costume to greet guests and show them the Madagascar hissing cockroaches and stick insects in the live petting zoo
  • Guest Kevin Murakoshi of Davis  (UC Davis alumnus) gifted the museum with intricate origami mantises that he crafted from "mantis green" paper--one sheet per mantis.
  • Guest Ian Alexander Levin of Sacramento displayed his enlarged images of mantises, including one of a mantis eating a bee that drew "oohs" and "aahs."
  • Skylar Primavera, who studied praying mantises while attending UC San Barbara (bachelor's degree in biology, 2020) displayed a live mantis as well as life-cycle models (ootheca to the adult), and answered questions about the predatory insect.
  • Sol Wantz, UC Davis entomology senior and president of the UC Davis Entomology Club, displayed a European mantis that she borrowed from a UC Davis garden

Guests viewed display drawers of both native and non-native mantises. At least 9 species of mantises in California, according to one display.

Five are native:

  • The Arizona or bordered mantid (Stagmomantis limbata)
  • Bistanta mexicana
  • California mantid (Stagmomantis wheeleri=S. californica)
  • Litaneutria ocularis=Litaneutria obscura
  • Small gray mantid (Litaneutria pacfica)

Four are introduced:

  • Chinese mantid (Tenodera sinensis)
  • European mantid (Mantis religiosa)
  • Mediterranean mantid (Iris oratoria)
  • South African mantid (Miomantis caffra)

Meanwhile, Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum, and Brennen Dyer, collections manager, fielded questions from the crowd. The Lepidoptera crew of Jeff Smith (curator of the Lepidoptera collection), Greg Kareofelas and Brittany Kohler showed guests assorted butterfly specimens collected world-wide.  Bohart intern Melody Ruiz, a third-year entomology major at UC Davis, staffed the family arts-and-crafts activity on mantises.  

The next two fall open houses, free and family friendly, are from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 23 and on Saturday, Nov. 4. The September open house is themed "Household Vampires." Think fleas, ticks and bedbugs! The November open house is on monarchs. Think iconic monarchs, milkweed and research.

The Bohart Museum, located in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building, 455 Crocker Lane, UC Davis, houses a global collection of eight million insect specimens, plus a live petting zoo and an insect-themed gift shop. The insect museum was founded in 1946 by Professor Richard Bohart of the UC Davis Department of Entomology (now the Department of Entomology and Nematology).

(Editor's Note: Tomorrow's Bug Squad blog will feature the creative kids and the creative staffer at the family arts-and-crafts activity.)

By Kathy Keatley Garvey
Author - Communications specialist
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For the Bohart Museum open house on praying mantises, Kevin Murakoshi of Davis crafted these intricate origami praying mantises. With him is UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum. Murakoshi, a UC Davis alumnus and former UC Davis employee (computer research specialist), is the principal solutions architect at Amazon Web Services. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

For the Bohart Museum open house on praying mantises, Kevin Murakoshi of Davis crafted these intricate origami praying mantises. With him is UC Davis distinguished professor Lynn Kimsey, director of the Bohart Museum. Murakoshi, a UC Davis alumnus and former UC Davis employee (computer research specialist), is the principal solutions architect at Amazon Web Services. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

 Close-up of the origami masterpieces of praying mantises, the work of Kevin Murakoshi of Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Close-up of the origami masterpieces of praying mantises, the work of Kevin Murakoshi of Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

 Talented photographer Ian Alexander Levin of Sacramento displayed enlarged images of praying mantises at the Bohart Museum of Entomology. Behind him is one of his images of a mantis eating a bee. Levin owns a child daycare in Sacramento and likes to share his images and critters with the youngsters in a

Talented photographer Ian Alexander Levin of Sacramento displayed enlarged images of praying mantises at the Bohart Museum of Entomology. Behind him is one of his images of a mantis eating a bee. Levin owns a child daycare in Sacramento and likes to share his images and critters with the youngsters in a "Critter Corner." He is the administrator of the Facebook page, SacraMantis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

 Skylar Primavera, who studied praying mantises while attending UC Santa Barbara (bachelor's degree in biology, 2020) displayed a live mantis and life-cycle models (from the ootheca, the egg case, to the adult), and answered questions about the insect. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Skylar Primavera, who studied praying mantises while attending UC Santa Barbara (bachelor's degree in biology, 2020) displayed a live mantis and life-cycle models (from the ootheca, the egg case, to the adult), and answered questions about the insect. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

 Hands that have never touched a praying mantis touched this European mantis, at the Bohart Museum of Entomology. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Hands that have never touched a praying mantis touched this European mantis, at the Bohart Museum of Entomology. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

 In a green praying mantis costume, Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator of the Bohart Museum of Entomology, answered questions from the guests at the open house on Aug. 27. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

In a green praying mantis costume, Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator of the Bohart Museum of Entomology, answered questions from the guests at the open house on Aug. 27. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)