Empusidae

Some bugs look like plants. They hide to catch food. These bugs live in warm places. They live in Africa and Asia. They also live in Europe.

These bugs look very strange. They have long bodies. They have flaps on their legs. Some even have a crest on their heads.

One kind of bug can make a sound. It rubs its wings to hiss. This helps it stay safe.

Long ago, people carved these bugs in rock. The carvings are very old. They show the bugs have strong arms.

These bugs are very cool to see.

Empusidae are a family of mantises. They look like plants. This helps them hide and hunt. They are ambush predators. This means they wait for prey to come near. They eat other insects and small animals. Most of these mantises live in Africa. Some live in Southeast Asia. Others live in southern Europe.

These bugs look very strange. They have big, odd bodies. Their middle and back legs have flap-like parts. They also have a crest around their neck area. One kind is the Gongylus mantis. It was the first mantis ever described. It can make a hissing sound. It does this by rubbing its wings against its legs. This helps it stay safe.

Some mantises have a special ear. It is on their chest area. This ear helps them hear bats. This helps them stay safe from being eaten. Long ago, people carved these bugs in rock. One carving in Iran is very old. It is between 4,000 and 40,000 years old. The carving shows the bug has strong arms.

Empusidae is a family of mantises that look like plants. These insects are ambush predators. This means they wait for food to come to them. They use their special bodies to hide from others. They eat small animals and other insects. Most of these mantises live in Africa. You can also find them in Southeast Asia. Some live in southern Europe too.

These mantises have very strange bodies. Their middle and back legs often have flap-like parts. The area around their neck has a crest. Their abdomen is often lobed. They also have a long pronotum. This is a part of their body shape. Some members of this group have a cyclopean ear. This ear is on their metathorax. It helps them hear bats. This adaptation likely started in the early Eocene.

Scientists have studied these bugs for a long time. The Gongylus mantis was the first mantis ever described. It was named by Linné in 1758. People have kept them in captivity for many years. This helps us learn how they live. We know how they like to breed. We even know how they defend themselves. They make a hissing noise to stay safe. They do this by rubbing their wings against their legs.

There are about 28 species in this family. They belong to the superfamily Hymenopoidea. This group also includes the Hymenopodidae family. Research shows they are sister groups to each other. A study by Svenson in 2015 revised their classification. The family has two subfamilies. These are Blepharodinae and Empusinae. There are ten different genera in the family.

Humans have noticed these insects for thousands of years. People carved them into rocks a long time ago. In Iran, there is a site called Teimareh. It has rock art from Khomeyn County. One carving shows a mantis with strong arms. This image is 14 cm long and 11 cm wide. It might be 40,000 to 4,000 years old. It looks like a famous 'squatter man' carving.

Empusidae is a family of mantises that mimic plants. These insects are known as ambush predators. This means they wait silently for prey to arrive. They use their unique shapes to hide in plain sight. Most species live in Africa. You can also find them in Southeast Asia and southern Europe. They are a monophyletic lineage. This means all members of the family share a single common ancestor.

The bodies of Empusidae are quite bizarre. They are relatively large insects with strange shapes. The prothorax is always surrounded by a crest. The pronotum, which is the part of the body behind the head, is characteristically elongated. Many species have a lobed abdomen. Their middle and hind legs often have flap-like appendages. These parts help them blend into their surroundings. This physical structure supports their life as ambush predators.

These mantises have specialized organs for survival. Members of the Mantoidea superfamily possess a cyclopean ear. This ear is located on the metathorax, which is a section of the thorax. This organ is an adaptation to avoid being eaten by bats. Scientists believe this adaptation originated in the early Eocene. Their mouthparts are also specially adapted. They use these parts to feed on other insects and small animals.

Scientists have a long history of studying this group. The species *Gongylus gongylodes* was the first mantis ever described. It was named by Linné in 1758. Because *Gongylus* mantises are often bred in captivity, we know much about them. We understand their breeding preferences and their behaviors. For example, they have a specific defensive behavior. They create a hissing noise to scare threats. They do this by rubbing the serrated edges of their front wings against their hind leg femurs.

Taxonomy helps us organize these insects into groups. The Empusidae belong to the superfamily Hymenopoidea. This superfamily also includes the Hymenopodidae family. Phylogenetic studies show that Empusidae is a sister group to Hymenopodidae. Together, these two groups are sister groups to all other ambush mantises. The current classification includes ten different genera. There are about 28 species within the family. A major revision of this classification was published by Svenson et al. in 2015.

The family is divided into two main subfamilies. The first subfamily is Blepharodinae. This group includes the genera *Blepharodes* and *Blepharopsis*. The second subfamily is Empusinae. This subfamily is more complex and contains two tribes. The first tribe is Empusini. It includes several subtribes like Empusina and Idolomorphina. The second tribe is Idolomorphini. This tribe includes the genus *Idolomantis*. Each group is defined by specific evolutionary relationships.

Humans have been aware of these insects for a very long time. In Iran, there is a site called Teimareh in Khomeyn County. This site contains ancient rock art. Researchers discovered a rock carving of an Empusidae there between 2017 and 2018. The carving shows a mantis with raptorial forearms. This insect-like image is 14 cm long and 11 cm wide. It features two circles at its sides. The carving may be between 4,000 and 40,000 years old. It is similar to the famous 'squatter man' petroglyphs found worldwide.