The Predation Strategy of the Recluse Spider Loxosceles rufipes (Lucas, 1834) against four Prey Species

García, Luis Fernando; Franco, Verónica; Robledo-Ospina, Luis E.; Viera, Carmen; Lacava, Mariángeles; Willemart, Rodrigo Hirata

doi:10.1007/s10905-016-9578-9

Cited by 16 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…Overall, we found that P. boliviensis needed a single bite to immobilize prey, probably as the spider was able to grasp and inject venom at the same time. A similar trend has been observed in Loxosceles , another medically important species [37]. Surprisingly, we observed an inverse relationship between prey mass and immobilization time, which contrasts with previous records [38].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 69%

Prey and Venom Efficacy of Male and Female Wandering Spider, Phoneutria boliviensis (Araneae: Ctenidae)

Valenzuela‐Rojas

González‐Gómez

Meijden

et al. 2019

Toxins

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Spiders rely on venom to catch prey and few species are even capable of capturing vertebrates. The majority of spiders are generalist predators, possessing complex venom, in which different toxins seem to target different types of prey. In this study, we focused on the trophic ecology and venom toxicity of Phoneutria boliviensis F. O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1897, a Central American spider of medical importance. We tested the hypothesis that its venom is adapted to catch vertebrate prey by studying its trophic ecology and venom toxicity against selected vertebrate and invertebrate prey. We compared both trophic ecology (based on acceptance experiments) and toxicity (based on bioassays) among sexes of this species. We found that P. boliviensis accepted geckos, spiders, and cockroaches as prey, but rejected frogs. There was no difference in acceptance between males and females. The venom of P. boliviensis was far more efficient against vertebrate (geckos) than invertebrate (spiders) prey in both immobilization time and LD50. Surprisingly, venom of males was more efficient than that of females. Our results suggest that P. boliviensis has adapted its venom to catch vertebrates, which may explain its toxicity to humans.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 69%

Prey and Venom Efficacy of Male and Female Wandering Spider, Phoneutria boliviensis (Araneae: Ctenidae)

Valenzuela‐Rojas

González‐Gómez

Meijden

et al. 2019

Toxins

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“…As a result, the capture time is much shorter than in euryphagous species (García et al, 2018;Michálek et al, 2017;Pekár et al, 2011;Pompozzi et al, 2019). On the other hand, euryphagous spiders, which select prey smaller than their body and must thus capture more items of prey, could minimize foraging time by shortening the duration of consumption of each item of prey (García et al, 2016;Pompozzi et al, 2019). Indeed, recent studies showed that cursorial obligatory stenophagous species selected larger prey and fed for a significantly longer time, extracting significantly more mass than euryphagous spiders (García et al, 2018;Michálek et al, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Deciphering the diet of a wandering spider (Phoneutria boliviensis; Araneae: Ctenidae) by DNA metabarcoding of gut contents

Ramírez

Guevara

Pérez

et al. 2021

Ecology and Evolution

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“…This species therefore uses a similar strategy to some predators with massive claws, like some crabs which crush their prey [9]. During prey capture we observed that some structures like head and thorax were repeatedly crushed by O. elatus, probably to incapacitate the prey, or to facilitate prey ingestion, similarly to other predators like spiders [36,37]. Cockroaches were more frequently stung than crickets by O. elatus, probably as their tough exoskeleton did not collapse under repeated pinches.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 86%

Pinching or stinging? Comparing prey capture among scorpions with contrasting morphologies

García¹,

Valenzuela‐Rojas²,

González‐Gómez³

et al. 2022

J. Venom. Anim. Toxins incl. Trop. Dis

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Background: Scorpions can use their pincers and/or stingers to subdue and immobilize their prey. A scorpion can thus choose between strategies involving force or venom, or both, depending on what is required to subdue its prey. Scorpions vary greatly in the size and strength of their pincers, and in the efficacy of their venom. Whether this variability is driven by their defensive or prey incapacitation functionis unknown. In this study, we test if scorpion species with different pincer morphologies and venom efficacies use these weapons differently during prey subjugation. To that end, we observed Opisthacanthus elatus and Chactas sp. with large pincers and Centruroides edwardsii and Tityus sp. with slender pincers. Methods: The scorpion pinch force was measured, and behavioral experiments were performed with hard and soft prey (Blaptica dubia and Acheta domesticus). Stinger use, sting frequency and immobilization time were measured. Results: We found that scorpions with large pincers such as O. elatus produce more force and use the stinger less, mostly subjugating prey by crushing them with the pincers. In C. edwardsii and Tityus sp. we found they use their slender and relatively weak pincers for holding the prey, but seem to predominantly use the stinger to subjugate them. On the other hand, Chactas sp. uses both strategies although it has a high pinch force. Conclusions: Our results show that scorpionspecies with massive pincers and high pinch force as O. elatus use the stinger less for prey subjugation than scorpionspecies with slenderpincers.

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The Predation Strategy of the Recluse Spider Loxosceles rufipes (Lucas, 1834) against four Prey Species

Cited by 16 publications

References 34 publications

Prey and Venom Efficacy of Male and Female Wandering Spider, Phoneutria boliviensis (Araneae: Ctenidae)

Prey and Venom Efficacy of Male and Female Wandering Spider, Phoneutria boliviensis (Araneae: Ctenidae)

Deciphering the diet of a wandering spider (Phoneutria boliviensis; Araneae: Ctenidae) by DNA metabarcoding of gut contents

Pinching or stinging? Comparing prey capture among scorpions with contrasting morphologies

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