The team found that from the perspective of a pollinating insect, the color of orchid mantises is indistinguishable from a large number of Malaysian flower species.
Next, the research team observed live orchid mantises in the field, counting the number of insects that were attracted to the mantis “flower.” They compared this to the number of insects that inspected an actual flower in the same amount of time.
Their hypothesis was right: They were surprised to find the mantises actually attracted more insects than the real flowers.
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