The belief is widespread that the male male is an unenviable fate after copulation with the individual of the opposite sex. We checked how much this stereotype is true.

The fact that females of mantis eat their males after (and sometimes even during or before) mating are devoted to dozens of materials on different popular science resources. Even if their authors talk about the research of this phenomenon, they are far away not always They explain how much it is everywhere. The stereotype of the "fatal" females of the mantis was reflected in fiction, and c cinema.

The behavior attributed to the praying persons is an example of the so -called sexual cannibalism. This term describes situations when the female eats the male at a particular stage of mating or even courtship. This phenomenon is observed in the behavior of some arachnid and insects, and in rare cases It takes place And the reverse process when males eat females. In most cases, this seemingly contrary to evolutionary ideas is explained by the need for food. Another version says: thus, females simply save the population from weak males. Consensus in the scientific community has not yet developed.

However, studies of biologists show that the fate of the mantis-male is not predetermined at all. As scientists calculated, depending on the type of female of the Mother of God Practicing Sexy cannibalism in 13–28% of cases. At the same time, as some specialists emphasize, males may well fertilize several females during their lives, but for this they should be attractive to them from an evolutionary point of view.

In 1994, a group of researchers from Lids University Spent An experiment dedicated to sexual cannibalism among the pilgrims. It turned out that the male chances of survival are sharply increased if he selects an already eating individual of the opposite sex for mating. Scientists report: “Not a single well -fed female ate her partner, regardless of the intensity of males. <...> In all cases, except for one, hungry females ate their partners, also regardless of courtship intensity. ”

Thus, far from all cases, males of the Pog of Maginals pay their heads for copulation with the female. In any case, this happens less often than some species of spider -shaped. Whether the outcome of mating mantes will be fatal, may depend on many factors. The nature of this behavior is still not fully studied and serves as a subject of scientific interest for biologists.