Earlier this summer, I found a little preying mantis in the basement. I chased him down and took him outside. A couple of weeks later, I found a preying mantis hanging out by the hummingbird feeders. I wonder if it was the same one?
Anyway, a couple of weeks ago, I saw the hummingbirds interacting with him. I went out and shooed them away from him because I thought they were aggravating him. The next day, I read my newest “Birds and Blooms” magazine while I was eating lunch, and I was horrified to find that PREYING MANTISES (what’s the plural?) EAT HUMMINGBIRDS!!!
I couldn’t get out the door fast enough!!! No stinking preying mantis was going to eat MY hummingbirds!
I scooped him up in a plastic McDonald’s cup and marched his little butt to the woods. Granted, it’s a straight shot back to the feeders, but this lot is 2 acres, and I hoped the distance would confuse him (I guess it did since he hasn’t been back).
Mylo had eaten the rest of my sandwich by the time I got back in.
(YouTube has some awful video of humming birds getting attacked.)
