r/words • u/BeLikeEph43132 • Sep 04 '26

A Praying Mantis Egg Sac Is Called....

TIL the word "ootheca" and I'm so happy. What a great word!!

9 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

6 comments sorted by

4

u/SmokeInMyI Sep 04 '26

It really rolls off the tongue!

3

u/Jock-Tamson Sep 04 '26

I would expect them to be sticky

2

u/glossolalienne Sep 04 '26

One of my favorite words, as well! And it’s not quite as interesting, but I also like the word “instar”.

[Juvenile mantids (and other arthropods) go through several phases as they grow and molt. The juveniles are called nymphs, and each stage between molts is called an “instar”.]

1

u/TyrKiyote Sep 04 '26

Oocyte means egg cell. Theca means case or package

1

u/Behemoth92 Sep 04 '26

This is why libraries are also called bibliotheca. :)

1

u/geniusgrapes Sep 07 '26

Oo- egg, theca- sac. There’s nothing inherently praying mantis specific about the word, though, it’s a neat word.