L. minor is found in the United States in Colorado, Arizona to Mexico, and the eastern regions of Washington to California.

As with all mantids, the front legs of L. minor are highly developed to grab and hold prey.

Ground mantids have been observed chasing down prey, rather than adopting the normal praying mantis "sit and wait" hunting behavior.

Mating times for this species are highly dependent upon weather conditions and prey availability.

L. minor is an extremely aggressive species and the female may sometimes mistake the potential mate for prey, and attack and eat the male.

The eggs lay dormant over winter, and if they survive, nymphs will start emerging from the ootheca in early spring.

Its small size easily allows it to quickly run and hide under rocks or dense vegetation.

The agile ground mantis is extremely aggressive, and will defend itself against predators or unruly prey.

Many flying mantids have evolved a highly sensitive ear which is capable of detecting ultrasonic frequencies emitted by bats using echolocation.