The Winner!

For the last couple of weeks two of the three praying mantises I have seen were victims of spiders. Today I was delighted to spot an adult female on the Viburnum. She was watching a garden soldier fly as it explored nearby leaves. I could tell by her behaviour that she was preparing to grab it if it came just a little closer. I adjusted my camera and settled to wait for the action. Then suddenly we were both startled by sudden activity on a leaf about 10 centimetres away. Another mantis had grabbed the fly!