What kind of praying mantis is this?

Question

I live in southern California, and took this picture today of a praying mantis in my backyard on a marigold:

http://www.ila.com/graphics/prayingmantis.jpg

Any bug experts out there that can give me specific information on what kind of praying mantis this is? Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Answer 1

I looked it up, and I believe that it's actually called the California Praying Mantis.  Not a very original name.

Answer 2

Aww! It's a baby! More appropriately called a nymph. You can tell by the lack of fully developed wings. It's a California mantis, most likely. I used to keep them when I was out there. They make fun pets. They do very well in captivity and they can be easily handled. I had a really big female that I used to let crawl on my head. I love those things.