Fathers Day is Mantis Day again

For some strange reason, the mantis egg cases that I keep in the refrigerator all winter almost always hatch on Father's Day. I'd say at least 80% of the years that's when it happens.

It happened again this year!

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Mantis hatching day is one of my favorite days of the year, as I love the little bugs!

It doesn't seem to matter when I take the jar out of the refrigerator, I'd bet money that they'll hatch on Father's Day Sunday.

I never look at the date, just take it out and put it on the kitchen counter when it seems like we won't get below freezing again. Or when I remember. I think it was pretty late this year.

I do know that this was the first year that it was raining on hatching morning, making it a lot more difficult to release them throughout the yard. I usually like to let them go all over the place and take photos as I do, but this year...

...I just got an accidental photo of my shirt.

I got several out on plants, but then just put the jar on the porch with the sad, droopy Aloe leaf to be used as a "ladder" out into the world:

From this they could get into the Japanese maple and also the Pachypodium:

It was working! (I knew it would -- they have a strong instinct to climb!)

Then I realized that there were quite a few webs on the aloe so moved the jar to where the bamboo could be the ladder:

Thumbs up to another successful hatching!

The only one I could get a good (dry) photo of after release was on the wall under the light...

...where in theory it will be able to catch its fill every night. Good luck little ones!


Why is it always on Father's Day?

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