While I was working on a deployment today from my home office desk, I noticed what I thought was a collection of sticks and leaves on the corner of my screen door. However, the sticks seemed a bit more "organized" than usual, so I stood up and walked over to inspect it. I could hardly believe it when I found out it was a Praying Mantis! I don't recall ever seen one in the wild before and it was a subject I've always wanted to capture. So I sprung into action, grabbed my camera and my slippers and had an impromptu photo shoot with it.
Unfortunately, it did not seems to enjoy the shoot as much as I was because within a few minutes it flung itself from the top of the door frame to the concrete patio below. Thankfully it seemed more stunned rather than injured as it scurried away after a quick pause. I believe it made it quite clear how it felt about the modeling gig so I decided to pack up and leave it be.
