I ran across old post in the forums about pseudopupils, the optical effect that creates a black dot in the compound eyes of insects. The pupil-like dot creates that eerie effect of the animal's gaze following you when you move even though the eyes don't actually move. The post reminded me of these two photos from deep, deep in the archives. This is a female ground-dwelling mantis, Eremiaphila brunneri, from the deserts of Israel. The two images were taken seconds apart.
Nice mantis:
Mean mantis:
Cheers, David
Mantis pseudopupils
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- MarkSturtevant
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Re: Mantis pseudopupils
Very good! The effect is indeed very startling. That is an interesting mantid species.
Mark Sturtevant
Dept. of Still Waters
Dept. of Still Waters