Praying mantis molting time lapse

Molting (or moulting) of a spiny flower mantis nymph. This video is a time lapse at variable speeds (1 to 200 x) of a sequence of moulting phases of a nymph of the praying mantis species Pseudocreobotra wahlbergii (or spiny flower mantis)
Wikipedia on moulting:
In biology, moulting (British English), or molting (American English), also known as sloughing, shedding, or in many invertebrates, ecdysis, is the manner in which an animal routinely casts off a part of its body (often, but not always, an outer layer or covering), either at specific times of the year, or at specific points in its life cycle.
Moulting can involve shedding the epidermis (skin), pelage (hair, feathers, fur, wool), or other external layer. In some groups, other body parts may be shed, for example, wings in some insects or the entire exoskeleton in arthropods.
In arthropods, such as insects, arachnids and crustaceans, moulting is the shedding of the exoskeleton (which is often called its shell), typically to let the organism grow. This process is called ecdysis. It is commonly said that ecdysis is necessary because the exoskeleton is rigid and cannot grow like skin, but this is simplistic, ignoring the fact that most Arthropoda with soft, flexible skins also undergo ecdysis. Among other things, ecdysis permits metamorphosis, the sometimes radical difference between the morphology of successive instars, and the fact that a new skin can replace structures, such as by providing new external lenses for eyes. The new exoskeleton is initially soft but hardens after the moulting of the old exoskeleton. The old exoskeleton is called an exuviae. While moulting, insects can't breathe.
Source:
en.wikipedia.o...
More about the spiny flower mantis on wikipedia:
en.wikipedia.o...
If you want to keep them as pets, read all about caring for Pseudocreobotra wahlbergii mantises in this caresheet: www.keepingins...
Music:
'Love Letters' by Aaron Kenny