I discovered a mating pair of praying mantis plus another female living among the tall sunflowers in my garden during mid-September. It was fascinating to watch the smaller dark male riding the female for a whole day before copulation. He even rode it out while his female attacked another large female mantid. Then came 24 hours of sex, during which I visited the garden morning and evening to see if he would escape with his head attached. To my surprise, he did! I saw them detach and he flew off within a minute. Lucky chap.
