A CAPTURED ADULT FEMALE Mantis religiosa (Insecta: Mantodea) LAID FOUR OOTHECAS UNDER LABORATORY CONDITIONS

The Mantodea (Insecta) (Burmeister, 1838) is a fairly studied insect because of its various spectacular features. But the number of oothecas laid by a female Mantis religiosa (Linnaeus, 1758) is not reported so far according to the knowledge of the author. A captured female Mantis religiosa was reared in the laboratory of Hacettepe University, Faculty of Biology, Department of Forensic Entomology, Ankara Turkey, between September and October 2019. This female has deposited four oothecas during her lifetime in captivity. Offsprings when emerged from such oothecas may be artificially selected to be reared in order to use as biological control agents.