A hooded Mantid
One of them owes me money.
Harry to Asta regarding the Mantids, at an alien convention, "Welcome Aliens"
On the series Resident Alien, Mantids are an alien species.
History[]
Harry Vanderspeigle and Asta Twelvetrees attend a presentation at an alien convention in which one of the hosts gives a brief presentation on the various alien species believed to exist by humans. Harry keeps up a running commentary regarding all of them to Asta, confirming that they all exist. When the presenter mentions the Mantids, he states that "One of them owes me money."
One of the Mantids attacks Robert Hutchins on the Grey facility on the moon and later assumes his form. He then pulls the same trick with Harry Vanderspeigle, taking his human form and leaving him and his child Bridget imprisoned in the Grey facility. He then returns to Earth with Asta and D'arcy Bloom, pretending that Bridget was killed by the Greys. When Max Hawthorne pays him a visit, urged to make peace with Harry by his friend Sahar, he is able to see through to the real Mantid alien, instead of the alien form of Harry Vanderspeigle that he normally sees.
For a time, Max and Sahar are the only ones who recognize the true nature of the Mantid, him successfully fooling Harry's other acquaintances in Patience.
Psychology & Behavior[]
They are considered extremely dangerous shapeshifters that one should not talk to or even get close to if at all possible. The Greys are known to abduct them in keep them in their secret facility on Earth's moon. They feast on people's flesh and take their form, though it is also at least sometimes possible for them to take another's form without killing them. They consume people's heads, but according to one of them, they are perfectly capable of consuming any part of the body, it is just that the head is the tastiest part. According to the same Mantid, he enjoys the Earth because it is difficult to find a place they have not already infiltrated, but the Earth is a blank slate.
Reproduction[]
After finding a mate, the male impregnates the female, who produces a giant egg sac holding 300 Mantid nymphs.