Real Christmas Trees Could Lead to These Hatching in Your Home

Prior to becoming an international superstar, Taylor Swift once worked on her parents' Christmas Tree Farm. Believe it or not, her job was cutting this very object out of trees before they could go home with customers.

Team Real Tree vs Team Fake Tree has been a decades debate long aluminum Christmas exploded in popularity in the 1950s.  Growing up, my family had both and I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss having one.  Unfortunately, thanks to my 15 pound cat not realizing that he's quite a bit larger than he was during his first Christmas with me, I'm stuck having an artificial tree. Every year, without fail, he tries to climb in the tree and lounge on the branches.  Call me lazy, but I don't have time to clean sap out of a long haired cat that big.

Turns out Dakota's Christmas tree disobedience happens to be a blessing in disguise, because that means I'll never bring one of these inside my house!

No, that's not a misshaped pine cone of sorts.  That my friends is a praying mantis egg case and by bringing it into your house, you just gave it the perfect place to hatch.  According to Country Living, the egg case is meant to protect eggs from cold winter temperatures until spring arrives and conditions are right for the hundreds of baby praying mantises to thrive.  If one hitched a ride into your home on a live Christmas tree, the cozy temperatures in your home might cause them to hatch early...in your house. Tiny praying mantises EVERYWHERE!

Nope, nope, nope! All of a sudden, I really love my artificial tree.

So what happens if you DO find one of these in your tree? Personally, I'd freak the heck out and set the whole house on fire...but that would put a huge damper on the holiday.  Instead, do what the lifestyle magazine suggests.  Snipping off the branch that it's attached to and put it outside. That'll give these little guys a good chance of actually making it spring and keep them from being additional holiday "guests" in your home! If you find one, there might be more so it's up to you if you want to do a comprehensive once over the tree or pitch the whole thing.

According to the Lewiston Tribune, praying mantises started growing in population in the Gem State almost two decades ago and have adapted to colder winters over the years.