The bark mantises and ground mantises (

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

''Tarachodes'') are

praying mantids Mantidae is one of the largest families in the order of praying mantises, based on the type species ''Mantis religiosa''; however, most genera are tropical or subtropical. Historically, this was the only family in the order, and many references ...

now placed in the family

Eremiaphilidae Eremiaphilidae is a small Old World family of praying mantids, based on the type genus '' Eremiaphila''. As part of a major revision of mantid taxonomy, this family now contains the subfamily Tarachodinae, which includes tribes and genera previ ...

Mantodea Species File (Version 5.0/5.0, retrieved 12 July 2020)
/ref> that are native to the

Afrotropics The Afrotropical realm is one of Earth's eight biogeographic realms. It includes Africa south of the Sahara Desert, the majority of the Arabian Peninsula, the island of Madagascar, southern Iran and extreme southwestern Pakistan, and the island ...

. They are generally light brown but more silvery on the wings. The wings are attractively reticulated, and the veins may be mottled dark and pale. The head is wider than the pronotum, which is rounded anteriorly, and doesn't overlap with the rear of the head. The pronotum is depressed, with its sides more or less parallel, and only a weak supra-coxal bulge is present. The anterior tibia are flattened and greatly expanded longitudinally, and the tibial claw does not fit into a pit between the 1st and 2nd external spines of the anterior femora, as in a few mantis groups. These mantids are ambush predators and many species are cryptically coloured to blend in with their surroundings. Some have brightly coloured undersides which are displayed to startle and drive off assailants. Some species such as ''

Tarachodes maurus ''Tarachodes maurus'' is a species of praying mantis in the family Eremiaphilidae. It was first described by the Swiss entomologist Henri Louis Frédéric de Saussure in 1871. It has been placed in either subgenus ''Chiropacha'' or subgenus ''Ta ...

'' brood their eggs, and others, such as ''

Tarachodes afzelii ''Tarachodes afzelii'', commonly known as the Tanzanian ground mantis, is a species of praying mantis in the family Eremiaphilidae. It is native to woodland in Western and Central Africa.Ene, J. C. "The Distribution and Post-embryonic Development ...

'', not only brood their eggs but continue to guard their young after they hatch out. File:Tarachodes sp, d, Pretoria.jpg, File:Tarachodes sp, g, Pretoria.jpg, File:Tarachodes sp, j, Pretoria.jpg, File:Tarachodes sp, i, Pretoria.jpg,

Species

Members of this genus may be called Bark mantises List of mantises and common names or Ground mantises. Tanzanian Ground Mantis

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q7345877 Tarachodidae Mantodea genera Taxa named by Hermann Burmeister

Species

See also

References