Re: more about spiders: why not get eaten?


"Josh Hayes" <joshno@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:Xns96AE9A23B3481joshblargnet@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> I'm a biologist and I still don't know the answer to this question.
>
> I've noticed a lot of orb-weavers do not sit in the web, but rather, sit
> off to the side, hidden under a leaf or window ledge or something. Some,
> however, sit, bold as brass, right in the middle of the web.
>
> Why don't they get eaten by all the insectivorous birds? (I know, spiders
> aren't insects, but they're crunchy morsels, right?) Are they distasteful,
> and maybe the hiding varieties aren't?
>
> In Panama, some of the larger orb-weavers produce *** webs flanking
their
> orbs: a friend of mine has hypothesized that this is to provide early
> detection of attacking birds, so that the spider can drop to safety, but
> I've never seen these in the Pacific Northwest.
>
> Any thoughts?
>
> -Josh

Josh,



I've observed more than one bird stealing morsels from a web. Sometimes the
spider is visible, sometimes not. My amateur guess is that the birds are
smart enough to know who's providing the free meal. "Don't bite the hand
that feeds you" may be the answer.



John




.