Bug FAQPurple-winged Mantis
Tenodera australasiae · Order: Mantodea · Family: Mantidae
Also called: Australian Mantid, Purple-winged Mantid
The purple-winged mantis can fly and is found across Australia, especially in the east. It eats a variety of insects and sometimes larger prey such as small frogs or lizards. It is the species Tenodera australasiae and is not present in New Zealand.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Tenodera australasiae is the scientific name of the purple-winged mantis.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
It is common in eastern Australia and occurs throughout the continent.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Its diet consists mainly of insects but it also eats larger animals such as small frogs and lizards.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
The species does not reproduce by parthenogenesis.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
The species is native to all of Australia and is absent from New Zealand.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It can be confused with Tenodera aridifolia or the Chinese mantis, Tenodera sinensis.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 2 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Hawaii, Louisiana.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
What does the purple-winged mantis eat?
It mainly eats insects, but it will also take small frogs, lizards and other larger prey.
Source: Wikipedia
Where in Australia can I find this mantis?
It is found throughout Australia, especially in the eastern regions.
Source: Wikipedia
How can I tell the purple-winged mantis apart from similar species?
Look for the species name Tenodera australasiae; other similar mantises include Tenodera aridifolia and Tenodera sinensis.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Mantidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenodera_australasiae
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.