11 Of The Most Bizarre Animal Mating Behaviours In The World

Sexual Cannibalism

Pleasing a female praying mantis is not easy, especially because there is a constant risk of being killed. To impress the female and convince her to mate, a male mantis first needs to show off some slick dance moves. If the female mantis thinks his skills are good enough, she will let him copulate with her. But if he fails to impress her, she will not hesitate to eat him on the spot. In either case, the female mantis may choose to chew the head off her male partner to increase her fertility and ensure the survival of her species. Although sexual cannibalism may seem cruel, it indirectly benefits male mantises by increasing their investment in offspring. A female mantis tends to lay more eggs if she engages in sexual cannibalism with a male.