The Bolas Spider!
There just doesn't seem to be any end to their skills, and the Bolas
Spider is one extraordinarily skilled hunter. Bolas spiders are around
66 species of three related genera and are found in America, Africa and
Australasia. Here's a typical scenario:
During the day, the female
Bolas spider is just hiding in passive disguise looking like a snail or a
bird dropping, although she
can often be
found in fairly exposed places. The male is much smaller than the
female and use a different technique that we'll talk about later. Now,
the main prey for these spiders is male moths. But traditional orb webs
are not effective for capturing moths, because only their scales will
stick on to the webs, allowing the moth to escape. And here's where the
interesting part comes in- as you see in the pic, the female spider
hangs a small bolus by a vertical thread. This bolas is covered in
watery stuff that flows through the scales of the moth so that glue in
the middle can stick onto the actual moth underneath. And it doesn't end
there. The female spider also secretes pheromones that are irresistible
to the male moths, thereby increasing their chances. Moreover,
depending on the species of moth, they can even change the scent of the
pheromone to attract the specific moth species.
And if this strategy fails, which is almost never the case, the female will eat her own bolus within half an hour or so.
The males and spiderlings hunt without a bola, as their bola are too small and they usually hunt directly for small flies.
Don't miss out this amazing video by David Attenborough himself :
http://www.youtube.com/
Source:
1) For more amazing pics: http://nathistoc.bio.uci.edu/
2) http://www.dailykos.com/story/
3) http://
Image: Stormcoat, San Diego, CA from- http://bugguide.net/node/view/
The Bolas Spider!
There just doesn't seem to be any end to their skills, and the Bolas Spider is one extraordinarily skilled hunter. Bolas spiders are around 66 species of three related genera and are found in America, Africa and Australasia. Here's a typical scenario:
During the day, the female Bolas spider is just hiding in passive disguise looking like a snail or a bird dropping, although she
There just doesn't seem to be any end to their skills, and the Bolas Spider is one extraordinarily skilled hunter. Bolas spiders are around 66 species of three related genera and are found in America, Africa and Australasia. Here's a typical scenario:
During the day, the female Bolas spider is just hiding in passive disguise looking like a snail or a bird dropping, although she
can often be
found in fairly exposed places. The male is much smaller than the
female and use a different technique that we'll talk about later. Now,
the main prey for these spiders is male moths. But traditional orb webs
are not effective for capturing moths, because only their scales will
stick on to the webs, allowing the moth to escape. And here's where the
interesting part comes in- as you see in the pic, the female spider
hangs a small bolus by a vertical thread. This bolas is covered in
watery stuff that flows through the scales of the moth so that glue in
the middle can stick onto the actual moth underneath. And it doesn't end
there. The female spider also secretes pheromones that are irresistible
to the male moths, thereby increasing their chances. Moreover,
depending on the species of moth, they can even change the scent of the
pheromone to attract the specific moth species.
And if this strategy fails, which is almost never the case, the female will eat her own bolus within half an hour or so.
The males and spiderlings hunt without a bola, as their bola are too small and they usually hunt directly for small flies.
Don't miss out this amazing video by David Attenborough himself :
http://www.youtube.com/
Source:
1) For more amazing pics: http://nathistoc.bio.uci.edu/
2) http://www.dailykos.com/story/
3) http://
Image: Stormcoat, San Diego, CA from- http://bugguide.net/node/view/
And if this strategy fails, which is almost never the case, the female will eat her own bolus within half an hour or so.
The males and spiderlings hunt without a bola, as their bola are too small and they usually hunt directly for small flies.
Don't miss out this amazing video by David Attenborough himself :
http://www.youtube.com/
Source:
1) For more amazing pics: http://nathistoc.bio.uci.edu/
2) http://www.dailykos.com/story/
3) http://
Image: Stormcoat, San Diego, CA from- http://bugguide.net/node/view/
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