Warning over praying mantis eggs attached to Christmas trees

Check your Christmas tree ASAP

(Facebook Daniel Reed)

Although Christmas-time means dragging trees into our homes to deck them out in ornaments and fairylights, it is important to remember that these trees may already be fulfilling an important job.

Hidden in the branches amongst your festive decorations hundreds of eggs can be lurking.

And zoologist Dr Gavin Svenson from the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, said the warmth of your homes can accelerate the time it takes for the eggs to hatch.

One person who discovered the clumps of eggs shared a picture on Facebook alongside a warning which went viral and was shared over 75,000 times.

Daniel Reed said he wants people to know what to do if they discover praying mantis eggs in their trees and what to do to give them the best chance of survival.

“If you happen to see a walnut sized/shaped egg mass, on your Christmas tree, don’t fret, clip the branch and put it in your garden," he wrote.

They look a bit like pinecones so if you didn’t know what preying mantis eggs look like, this is important information.

“We had two egg masses on your tree this year. Don’t bring them inside they will hatch and starve!” Reed wants people to look out for these clumps - and hopefully take the proper precautions to make sure they get back to their outside homes.

People on Facebook are grateful for the information - and have thanked Reed for protecting the hundreds of insects.

Betsy Borowiak said, “You educated me today, thanks, now I know to look for this and make sure we protect and care.”

Chris Maslak commented, “Wow how cool is that,” which you may or may not agree with.

Carolyn Henderson summed up what you may currently be thinking, “And that is why I don’t want a real tree in my house.”

Your Christmas tree may be home to hundreds of preying mantis babies

But even if you find the advice a bit gross, it would be smart to check - some commenters are sharing stories of the hundreds of bugs hatching in their houses because they did not know to look for the eggs, which sounds pretty awful.

Connie Wydra Newton commented, “We had a tree with one in and we didn’t know until they hatched. They were everywhere.”

Check your tree or these could hatch in your home

You learn something new everyday. Now go check your Christmas tree - or put it back outside.