The European mantis Mantis religiosa (Linnaeus, 1758) (Mantodea: Mantidae) in Poland – the present status and changes in range

Abstract

This paper presents the past and present occurrence of Mantis religiosa in Poland and discusses range changes of this species during the last 100 years (1923–2021), based on 2664 records, 2029 of these unpublished. Up to 1994, the species was restricted to a relatively small area in the south-eastern part of Poland (3.3% of the country's area). During 27 years (1995–2021), M. religiosa spread from there to the north, west and south, increasing its range more than 20 times, to 77% of Poland’s area. At present, only north-western part of the country and central part of mountainous belt in the south are not occupied or sparsely occupied by this species. The average annual increase in European mantis range in Poland in the years 2013–2021 was eight times faster than during the earlier period (1995–2012).