Mantis religiosa

Welcome to Project Noah! This is a great first spotting. I hope you enjoy it here as much as I do! I am a big fan of the Mantids. I can tell you that I think this mantis looks more like an adult male from Genus Stagmomantis. There are a couple of species in California from this genus. Juvenile mantids are unable to fly as their wings are not fully developed. Many adult mantids choose to walk,rather than fly as they seem to be somewhat clumsy fliers. I can see that this mantis has full wings. Here is a link to Bug Guide (one of my favorite online references) for the species found in your area. California Mantis (Stagmomantis californica): http://bugguide.net/node/view/7985/bgpage Stagmomantis limbata: http://bugguide.net/node/view/149885 Mantids and all other insects, arachnids and crustaceans go in the Arthropod section (I moved this one for you). The Genus and Species name goes in the Scientific Name section. If you don't know the genus and species for an organism, it is better to leave that area blank and tick the box that indicates you need help with identification. If you haven't already done so, please take a few minutes to read through the FAQ page for general guidelines for the site. We also have some great reads in the BLOG section. http://www.projectnoah.org/faq http://blog.projectnoah.org/ I hope this is helpful and I look forward to seeing more spottings from your area.