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Dead Leaf Mantis

uncommon

Dead Leaf Mantis

Deroplatys desiccata

Habitat
Southeast Asian tropical forest understory
Body length
90 mm
Order
Mantodea · Deroplatyidae

Weird but real

Its thorax flares into a dry-leaf shield, complete with vein-like ridges and ragged edges.

Why it's cool

It looks less like camouflage and more like a fallen leaf that learned to stare back.

Photographs

Giant Dead Leaf Mantis - prepared in the Beauchene technique.
Didier Descouens · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Taman Negara NP, Pahang, MALAYSIA
Bernard DUPONT from FRANCE · CC BY-SA 2.0 · source