The mantises are an order of insects containing over 2,400 species and about 430 genera in 15 families. The largest family is the Mantidae. Distributed worldwide in temperate and tropical habitats, mantids have triangular heads with bulging eyes supported on flexible necks, and elongated bodies with or without wings. All mantises have greatly enlarged forelegs adapted for catching and gripping prey; their stationary upright posture, with forearms folded, has led to the common name "praying mantis". They are mostly ambush predators, but a few ground-dwelling species actively seek prey. They live for about a year; in cooler climates, the adults lay eggs in autumn, and die. Protected by their hard capsule, the eggs hatch in the spring. Mantises are sometimes confused with stick insects (Phasmatodea), other elongated insects such as grasshoppers (Orthoptera), or other insects with raptorial forelegs such as mantisflies (Mantispidae). Mantises were considered to have supernatural powers by early civilizations, including Ancient Greece, Ancient Egypt, and Assyria. They are among the insects most commonly kept as pets.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantis

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

797:

Byzantine emperor Constantine VI was captured, blinded, and imprisoned by the supporters of his mother Irene. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_VI

1713:

With no living male heirs, Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI issued the Pragmatic Sanction to ensure one of his daughters would inherit the Habsburg lands. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_VI,_Holy_Roman_Emperor

1861:

American Civil War: The first bloodshed of the war took place when Confederate sympathizers in Baltimore, Maryland, attacked members of the Massachusetts militia en route to Washington, D.C. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore_riot_of_1861

1943:

The Holocaust: Nazi troops entered the Warsaw Ghetto to round up the remaining Jews, sparking the first mass uprising in Poland against the German occupation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warsaw_Ghetto_Uprising

1989:

A gun turret on board the United States Navy battleship Iowa exploded, killing 47 sailors. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Iowa_turret_explosion

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

sgraffito: (art) A technique in ceramics, art and wall design, where the top layer of pigment or slip is scratched through to reveal an underlying layer. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sgraffito

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Of justice yet must God in fine restore, This noble crowne unto the lawful heire For right will alwayes live, and rise at length, But wrong can never take deepe roote to last.   --Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Thomas_Sackville,_1st_Earl_of_Dorset