Preying mantis eyes during the day, and during the night

Images of undisturbed subjects in their natural environment. All subject types.

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MarkSturtevant
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Preying mantis eyes during the day, and during the night

Post by MarkSturtevant »

By day, mantis eyes are green (or some other camouflage color) because light is reflected away from pigment cells that surround each facet of the eye. Light can only enter their eye facets by going straight down a narrow tunnel, and this tight control of light entering the eyes gives them better visual acuity. An effect of all this is the 'pseudopupil' -- the dark spot on each compound eye where the viewer is looking straight down the small group of eye facets that happen to be aimed right at the viewer. This is why this hungry lady seems to be looking at you.
Image

At night, mantises adapt their eyes for night vision by moving the reflective pigment cells away from the surface of the compound eyes. This allows in more light for 'night vision', but it also makes them look like bug-eyed aliens.
Image
Mark Sturtevant
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rjlittlefield
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Post by rjlittlefield »

Mark, excellent photographs!

I've observed this effect before and found it very interesting, as documented at http://www.photomacrography.net/forum/v ... php?t=3074 .

So now I am again curious: do all mantis do this?

--Rik

dolmadis
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Post by dolmadis »

I did some research work on moths (nocturnal) at UK Uni. Different species of moths came to a light trap at different times of night and are active for different periods. This was not known previously.

That inferred to my supervisor different diurnal rhythms. But there is always the possibility (I said) that very small variations in lux over the night (there are these even with a cloudless night - tested) might also have an influence on the diurnal rhythms or physical changes in the ommatidia.

Other previous research had shown physical evidence in certain species of moth that the pigment migrated in the ommatidia for light and dark adapted.

The suggestion was that in light adapted mode moths would be inactive.

I did not get further funding so the question is still open.

Regards

John

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Post by ChrisR »

Curious that the small thing I assume to be an ocellus, hasn't behaved the same way as in Rik's example.
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MarkSturtevant
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Post by MarkSturtevant »

rjlittlefield wrote: So now I am again curious: do all mantis do this?
--Rik
I don't know. I can only add that the color change happens on schedule even when they are in captivity & kept in a well lit room. So to me that means it is a circadian cycle rather than being induced by light or dark.
Mark Sturtevant
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Lou Jost
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Post by Lou Jost »

Mark, that's a fascinating observation! Probably common across many insect groups. It is the kind of thing no one would notice except for someone like you who raises insects and observes them closely. It shows how ignorant most of us are about even the most common things on this planet.

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Post by rjlittlefield »

MarkSturtevant wrote:I can only add that the color change happens on schedule even when they are in captivity & kept in a well lit room. So to me that means it is a circadian cycle rather than being induced by light or dark.
Very interesting! I did not notice that with my subject. I have vague memories that I tried putting the beast in a dark closet in the middle of the day and saw at least partial darkening then. But the memories could be wrong, and I do not have notes to check. Perhaps another mantis will turn up this next summer so I can look specifically for that effect.

--Rik

MarkSturtevant
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Post by MarkSturtevant »

Lou Jost wrote:Mark, that's a fascinating observation! Probably common across many insect groups. It is the kind of thing no one would notice except for someone like you who raises insects and observes them closely. It shows how ignorant most of us are about even the most common things on this planet.
I know a few people who had encountered this phenomenon when they find a well-fed mantis in the morning at their porch light or window, where it had spent the night feeding on insects. The eyes are still dark early in the morning.
Mark Sturtevant
Dept. of Still Waters

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