March 2011
Hot Property News Letter – March 2011
Welcome to this issue of the Hot Property news letter which we hope you find informative and helpful. If you have any suggestions, comments or questions, which we can address in future issues, you can contact us at info@hotpropertyspain.net
1: THE BLOKE IN THE CORNER
Are you an "Easter" or a "Streeter" - in other words a fan of East Enders or Coronation street or maybe, like me, neither?
Once again, East Enders has won the National Television Award. Now I must admit that I do not watch either programme, although other family members do, but it seems impossible to get away from this fiction, as the tabloids treat it as "faction" (I know, I made it up). Is it only me that thinks……why do the characters in either never have any enjoyment in life, are always shouting, fighting, cheating, stealing, committing murder and just generally being miserable”?
I have the feeling that both programmes are popular as the characters, have a worse life than even the most down trodden individual and therefore make the viewer feel happier about their own life?
The show may mimic life, but the true comparison is ridiculous. I cannot envisage a drug addict arsonist being able to become completely cured in less than a month and, somehow, avoid any punishment.
Don´t get me started on how any right minded person can see a cot death, or for that matter, the stealing of a baby as so called entertainment?
If this is now the UK is, then I am glad that I live in Spain, but for all soap fans, all episodes of the Street & Square, and for that matter, the Australian soaps, can all be watched here just as you can in the UK.
For me, however, with the weather getting warmer and the days getting longer, it is now time to get out and about into the Spanish, now smoke-free, café culture, and do some people watching.
2: THE PRAYING MANTIS
One of the most interesting species that inhabits the domestic garden here in Spain is The Praying Mantis.
The first one I saw was clinging to a wall, intently watching a small insect about a foot away. I leaned over the Mantis to get a good look at it, when the creature became aware of me, it turned its head around to get a good look at me, its eyes following my every move, looking me up & down without any sign of fear, perused for a few seconds and then turned away to resume its stalking, as if I was of no consequence, or perhaps too big to eat.
Since then, I have seen many others of all sizes, green & brown, such as the small one perched on my thumb in the photograph, to the largest of approximately 8" or 200mm in length.
However the better, colloquial name for the order is "praying mantises", because they do look like someone praying, although I have seen the term misspelled as "preying mantis" since mantises are predatory. In Spain the "praying mantis" refers to Mantis religiosa.
Etymology - The scientific name Mantodea comes from the Greek words μάντις meaning a prophet, and εἶδος for form or shape. The name was coined in 1838 by the German entomologist Hermann Burmeister. The common term mantis is also from the Greek word μάντις for prophet.
Anatomy and morphology - Mantises have two grasping, spiked forelegs ("raptorial legs") in which prey items are caught and held securely. The first thoracic segment, the prothorax, is commonly elongated and flexibly articulated, allowing for greater range of movement of the front limbs, while the remainder of the body remains more or less immobile. The articulation of the head is also remarkably flexible, permitting nearly 300 degrees of movement in some species, allowing for a great range of vision (their compound eyes have a large binocular field of vision) without having to move the remainder of the body. As their hunting relies heavily on vision, they are primarily diurnal, but many species will fly at night.
Diet and predatory behaviour - Mantises are exclusively predatory. Insects form the primary diet, but larger species have been known to prey on small lizards, frogs, birds, snakes, fish and reportedly even rodents, in fact they will prey upon any species small enough to successfully capture and devour, also most species of mantis are known to engage in cannibalism.
Defense and camouflage - Generally, mantises are protected simply by virtue of concealment. When directly threatened, many mantis species stand tall and spread their forelegs, with their wings fanning out wide. The fanning of the wings evidently makes the mantis seem larger and more threatening, with some species having bright colors and patterns on their hind legs. If harassment persists, a mantis may then strike with its forelegs and attempt to pinch or bite. As part of the threat display, some species also may produce a hissing sound by expelling air from the abdominal spiracles.
When flying at night, at least some mantises are able to detect the echolocation sounds produced by bats, and when the frequency begins to increase rapidly, indicating an approaching bat, they will stop flying horizontally and begin a descending spiral toward the safety of the ground, often preceded by an aerial loop or spin.
Mantises, like stick insects, show rocking behaviour, in which the insect makes rhythmic, repetitive side-to-side movements. Functions proposed for this include the enhancement of "crypsis" the ability of an organism to avoid observation or detection, by means of the resemblance to vegetation moving in the wind. However, the repetitive swaying movements may be most important in allowing the insects to discriminate objects from the background by their relative movement, a visual mechanism typical of simpler animals. Rocking movements by these generally sedentary insects may replace flying or running as a source of relative motion of objects in the visual field.
Mantises are camouflaged, and most species make use of protective coloration to blend in with the foliage or substrate, both to avoid predators themselves, and to better snare their victims. Various species have evolved to not only blend with the foliage, but to mimic it, appearing as either living or withered leaves, sticks, tree bark, blades of grass, flowers, or even stones. Some species in Africa and Australia are able to turn black after a molt, following a fire in the region, to blend in with the fire ravaged landscape (fire melanism). While mantises can bite, they have no venom. They do not appear to be chemically protected. Nearly any large predatory animal will eat a mantis such as owls, bullfrogs, snakes, bats, etc.
Reproduction and life history - Sexual cannibalism is common among mantises in captivity, and under some circumstances may also be observed in the field. The female may start feeding by biting off the male’s head (as they do with regular prey), and if mating had begun, the male’s movements may become even more vigorous in its delivery of sperm.
The mating season in temperate climates typically begins in autumn, and after mating, the female then lays between 10 and 400 eggs, depending on the species. Eggs are typically deposited in a frothy mass that is produced by glands in the abdomen. This froth then hardens, creating a protective capsule with a further protective coat, and the egg mass is called an ootheca. Depending on the species these can be attached to a flat surface, wrapped around a plant or even deposited in the ground. Despite the versatility and durability of the eggs, they are often preyed on, especially by several species of parasitic wasps. In a few species, the mother guards the eggs.
As in related insect groups, mantises go through three stages of metamorphosis: egg, nymph, and adult (mantises are among the hemimetabolic insects). The nymph and adult insect are structurally quite similar, except that the nymph is smaller and has no wings or functional genitalia. The nymphs are also sometimes colored differently from the adult and the early stages are often mimics of ants. A mantis nymph increases in size (often changing its diet as it does so) by replacing its outer body covering with a sturdy, flexible exoskeleton and molting when needed. This can happen up to five to ten times, depending on the species. After the final molt, most species have wings, though some species are wingless or brachypterous ("short-winged"), particularly in the female sex.
In tropical species, the natural lifespan of a mantis in the wild is about 10–12 months, but some species kept in captivity have been sustained for 14 months. In colder areas, females will die during the winter (as well as any surviving males).
Pest control uses - Organic gardeners who avoid pesticides may encourage mantises as a form of biological pest control. Tens of thousands of mantis egg cases are sold each year in some garden stores for this purpose, and egg cases are commercially available for placement in landscaping. However, mantises prey on neutral and beneficial insects as well, basically eating anything they can successfully capture and devour.
Conservation status - Only one Spanish species, Apteromantis aptera, is listed as Lower Risk/Near Threatened. There is a long-standing urban legend that killing a praying mantis is illegal and subject to a fine. The origin of this myth is unknown. However, the writer feels that gardeners should do all that they can to encourage this natural pest controller in the domestic garden.
This newsletter is intended as a guide and to be informative and helpful in the process of searching for and purchasing a property in Spain. Total accuracy cannot be guaranteed and in all legal, fiscal and other matters a fully qualified professional should be consulted. Reproduction of any part of this newsletter is not permitted without written permission.