Praying Mantises Hidden In Christmas Tree Take Over Woman's Home
SPRINGFIELD, Va. (CBS Local) — The holiday season is over, but a woman's Christmas tree just keeps giving -- and not in a good way.
Molly Kreuze of Springfield says more than 100 praying mantises have infested her home after hatching from a brown egg case hidden under the tree's branches.
The bugs are everywhere, "crawling on the walls, crawling on the ceilings," she told WJLA.
Kreuze, who is a veterinarian, said she isn't scared. In fact, she's trying to round them all up alive and is even feeding them fruit flies.
She says she'll eventually give them away to people who use mantises in their gardens to keep away other pests.
"In my googling, I discovered people really like praying mantises," Kreuze said. "They are useful, they eat other bugs, people use them for organic gardening."
Kreuze said she will get an artificial tree for next Christmas.