Praying mantises get to test out worlds smallest 3D glasses

Newcastle University are conducting a research programme to understand 3D vision in the praying mantis. To do this the team have attached pairs of 3D glasses - the world’s tiniest - with beeswax to the insects.

Dr Jenny Read, who leads the team said: “Despite their minute brains, mantises are sophisticated visual hunters which can capture prey with terrifying efficiency. We can learn a lot by studying how they perceive the world.”

Dr Vivek Nityananda, an investigator involved in the study said: “If we find that the way mantises process 3D vision is very different to humans then that could open up all kinds of possibilities to create much simpler ways to program 3D vision into robots."

Newcastle University released a video below explaining the research programme: