Lots of people like a real Christmas tree to brighten up their homes – but the last thing anyone wants is an insect infestation.
People have been urged to check their trees for small walnut-sized lumps, and to remove any they find as soon as possible.
This is because the clumps, which resemble pine cones, could be a sac of 100 to 200 praying mantis eggs.
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According to The Mirror, it's vital people seek the sacs before the eggs hatch as this can lead to a nasty infestation.
To try and help people dodge the risk, social media users have been sharing their tips as to how to both spot and rid the pesky sacs.
Advice was issued after a man found two clumps on his tree and posted it on Facebook, where he explained the best way to deal with the problem.
Others were then keen to help and people couldn't believe what a problem the little sacs had the potential to cause.
In his viral post, Daniel Reed wrote: "If you happen to see a walnut sized/shaped egg mass on your Christmas tree, don’t fret, clip the branch and put it in your garden.
"These are 100-200 preying (sic) mantis eggs! We had two egg masses on our tree this year.
"Don’t bring them inside they will hatch and starve!"
Since it was published, the post has been shared over 180,000 times, and many people commented on the issue.
One person said: "We had a tree with one in, and we didn't know until they hatched.
"They were everywhere."
A second person wrote: "That s*** happened to me a few years ago it was crazy, went to my in laws house came back to a bunch of little bugs, found out they were praying mantises."
Another added: "I think I have PTSD from when it happened to us."
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