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uncommon
Mantis Lacewing
Mantispa styriaca
- Habitat
- Warm meadows and woodland edges, southern Europe to Central Asia
- Body length
- 20 mm
- Order
- Neuroptera · Mantispidae
Weird but real
Looks exactly like a tiny praying mantis but is actually a lacewing. Convergent evolution gave it the same body plan from a different ancestry.
Why it's cool
Larvae hijack spider egg sacs and eat the babies from the inside. Adult looks innocent and delicate. Plot twist: the larva is the horror movie.
