Sibling cannibalism in the false widow spider is dependent on spiderling density and the reliable availability of fresh prey
Jeffrey A. Harvey,
Robin Steegh,
Yuting Dong
et al.
Abstract:Adult female spiders lay batches of eggs in silken egg sacs, and after hatching, the spiderlings live for transient periods in their mother's web before dispersing. Sibling cannibalism is frequently observed among spiderlings of many species under conditions of food deprivation. Here, we conducted assays in small Petri dishes with different densities of newly hatched (second instar) spiderlings of the false widow spider, Steatoda grossa, using a split‐clutch design. Prey (freshly killed fruit flies) availabili… Show more
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