Mythomantis confusa is a rare praying mantis from Southeast Asia, first described in 1889 and belonging to the Deroplatyidae family. Found mainly in Indonesia’s tropical forests, it is a highly cryptic species that mimics dried leaves and bark, blending into the understory and leaf litter where it waits motionless to ambush small insects. Its genus is very limited, with only two known species, and sightings in the wild are scarce, making it one of the more enigmatic mantids studied by entomologists.
 
Unlike more familiar flower mantids, M. confusa is almost absent from the pet trade and remains poorly documented in terms of breeding and life cycle. It is thought to require warm, humid conditions similar to its native forests, but most knowledge comes from scattered field records rather than captive experience. This rarity and mystery make it a “collector’s treasure,” valued more for its ecological and taxonomic significance than for practical husbandry.