A viral warning has urged people with real Christmas trees to look out for a brown, walnut-sized hard clump that resembles a pine cone, as it could actually be a praying mantis egg sac containing hundreds of eggs
The festive countdown has commenced and for many households, the season officially kicks off with erecting the Christmas tree.
Regrettably though, there might be some uninvited visitors hiding amongst the tinsel and decorations.
Whilst we only desire gifts beneath our trees, they can actually serve as a breeding haven for creepy crawlies.
If this worries you, simply stay alert should you notice a brown, walnut-sized rigid cluster – resembling a pine cone – as it might not be as harmless as it appears.
Actually, it could be a capsule containing 100-200 praying mantis eggs, reports the Mirror.
Natural trees are frequently a perfect location for the eggs to remain unnoticed as they camouflage themselves on branch tips.
And our cosy, heated homes can offer the ideal conditions for them to emerge.
This specific caution has become widespread online previously, and it’s certain to trouble many people’s thoughts when they transport their Christmas tree home for decorating.
In one widely-shared TikTok clip, content creator Lexi Natoli warned: “If you see this on your Christmas tree, get rid of it immediately. It might not look like much but this is actually a praying mantis egg sac and they’re really commonly found on Christmas trees.
“When you bring the tree inside, the warmth of your house will cause them to hatch and you will have hundreds of preying mantis’ running around your house. So, do yourself a favour and check your tree.”
People were eager to share their views in the comments section of the video. One individual expressed: “I’m so excited to raise a colony of praying mantis’,” while another recounted: “One hatched in my house once. It was terrible.”
A third person humorously remarked: “This is why we get reusable plastic trees in the UK.”
Echoing similar sentiments, another joked: “My family [has been] using the same plastic Christmas tree for 10 years LOL.”
Sharing a personal anecdote, one commenter revealed: “We found this and didn’t know what it was. My mum had it in her car from the Christmas tree, I don’t know why. And one day, thousands of babies were all in the car.”
Another shared: “Stuff like this (and stories from my firefighter grandfather) are the reasons why I will never get a real tree for Christmas.”
The warning only applies to real Christmas trees and finding these egg sacs is rare, especially in the UK.
