Salticids, the largest family of spiders, have unique eyes, acute vision, and elaborate vision-mediated predatory behavior, which is more pronounced than in any other spider group. Diverse predatory strategies have evolved, including araneophagy, aggressive mimicry, myrmicophagy, and prey-specific prey-catching behavior. Salticids are also distinctive for development of behavioral flexibility, including conditional predatory strategies, the use of trial-and-error to solve predatory problems, and the undertaking of detours to reach prey. Predatory behavior of araneophagic salticids has undergone local adaptation to local prey, and there is evidence of predator-prey coevolution. Trade-offs between mating and predatory strategies appear to be important in ant-mimicking and araneophagic species.

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Nectivory was studied in 90 species from the spider family Salticidae. Observations of 31 of these species feeding on nectar from¯owers in nature was the impetus for laboratory tests in which all 90 species fed from¯owers. That sugar, not just water, is relevant to salticids was implied by choice tests where salticids spent more time drinking from a simulated nectar source (30% sucrose solution) than from distilled water. Our ®ndings suggest that nectar feeding may be widespread, if not routine, in salticid spiders.

Using a tropical fauna from the Philippines as a case study, ant-salticid predator-prey relationships were investigated. In the field, 41 observations of ant predation on salticids were made, and the actual attack on the salticid was seen in four. In the laboratory, five of the ant genera observed in the field were tested with four categories of salticids: (1) four myrmecophagic (i.e., ant-eating) species, (2) six myrmecomorphic (i.e., ant-like) species, (3) an ant-associate species (i.e., a species that is neither myrmecophagic nor myrmecomorphic, but known to associate with ants), and (4) 14 ordinary species (i.e., species that are neither ant-eating nor ant-like, and are not known to associate with ants). In these tests the highest survival rates were observed in the myrmecophagic salticids, followed by the myrmecomorphic salticids, the ant-associate species, and finally the ordinary species.

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