Yosemite's Strangest Love Story | America's National Parks | National Geographic

2m read

·Nov 10, 2024

NARRATOR: From Yosemite's iconic green valley to its secret eastern edge. The little rain reaches this arid landscape, blocked by over 13,000 feet of solid Sierra Nevada. An alien desert-like habitat, home to one of the park's strangest females: a praying mantis.

It's the last days of summer in Yosemite, and she's coming to the end of her seasonal feeding spree. Her main weapons are prominent front legs lined with shark tooth-shaped spikes. The praying mantis is the only insect on the planet with three-dimensional vision. Her lightning fast strike clocks at 1/20 of a second. But this is only a cricket drumstick appetizer.

She releases a concoction of alluring pheromones into the air. Oh do mantis. One lucky guy picks up the signal. Maybe some eye contact can smooth out this first date, or maybe not. In exchange for his would-be wooing, the Casanova is attacked. It's impossible for him to free himself. The male's head is ripped off—the female's final main course.

It's an abrupt end to a first date. Or is it? The decapitated male is still moving. The headless torso of the male praying mantis is still controlled by nerves in the abdomen. In a final mating act, his body completes what his head started. The female, on the other hand, is busy finishing dinner.

She'll mate with multiple males each breeding season. Not all of them will suffer the same fate. But the males who are decapitated may father the most eggs. The ultimate sacrifice in a unique Yosemite love story.

[BIRDS CHIRPING]

[MUSIC PLAYING]

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