The pirate spider
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- MarkSturtevant
- Posts: 1957
- Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2015 6:52 pm
- Location: Michigan, U.S.A.
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The pirate spider
I am posting this here because most of the pictures are done at a table under controlled conditions.
I came across a pirate spider (Mimetus puritanus) in the yard. Pirate spiders are specialists in that they eat other spiders almost exclusively. With some mixed feelings about it, I decided to try to photograph this spider while it was doing its thing. There were orb weavers (I think cross orbweavers, Araneus didematus).in our front yard, so I got the camera and put the pirate spider near the web of one of the orb weavers. You can see Mimetus in this picture in the upper left. She froze the moment she contacted the orb weaver web. There was a definite impression that she was deciding on what to do next.
Pirate spider and future prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Unfortunately, I then discovered that the batteries for the flash were dying, so I ran off to replace them. Just a couple minutes, but it was already over when I returned (@$#%$$!!). I wanted to see what happened! Pirate spiders commonly go right into the web of their prey, and there they use their long legs to hold the victim at a distance while they plant a delicate bite onto the end of one of their legs. The effects are described as very quick since their venom is especially potent against spiders. That sure seemed to be the case here since in just a short time the orb weaver was already subdued!
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Well, I did have a good time taking pictures of the meal. These pictures are stacked from 2-9 focus bracketed pictures taken by hand while seated at our patio table.
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Is is just me, or do the markings on the abdomen look … maniacal?
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
And here are some before-dinner staged shots of Mimetus. These too are focus stacked.
Pirate spider by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Pirate spider by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Just a closing note. Although I did not get to see how Mimetus got the spider, it is often described that they fool their victim into thinking that they have prey trapped in the web, so the other spider attacks and gets a big surprise. But this is now disputed since the web vibrations that pirate spiders make do not resemble that of prey. So its been proposed that pirate spiders instead fool the other spider into thinking that they have a kleptoparasitic spider (which is a spider that enters webs to steal food. It happens). This causes the other spider to either ignore the interloper until its too late, or to approach to shoo them away.
Thanks for looking!
I came across a pirate spider (Mimetus puritanus) in the yard. Pirate spiders are specialists in that they eat other spiders almost exclusively. With some mixed feelings about it, I decided to try to photograph this spider while it was doing its thing. There were orb weavers (I think cross orbweavers, Araneus didematus).in our front yard, so I got the camera and put the pirate spider near the web of one of the orb weavers. You can see Mimetus in this picture in the upper left. She froze the moment she contacted the orb weaver web. There was a definite impression that she was deciding on what to do next.
Pirate spider and future prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Unfortunately, I then discovered that the batteries for the flash were dying, so I ran off to replace them. Just a couple minutes, but it was already over when I returned (@$#%$$!!). I wanted to see what happened! Pirate spiders commonly go right into the web of their prey, and there they use their long legs to hold the victim at a distance while they plant a delicate bite onto the end of one of their legs. The effects are described as very quick since their venom is especially potent against spiders. That sure seemed to be the case here since in just a short time the orb weaver was already subdued!
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Well, I did have a good time taking pictures of the meal. These pictures are stacked from 2-9 focus bracketed pictures taken by hand while seated at our patio table.
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Is is just me, or do the markings on the abdomen look … maniacal?
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Pirate spider and prey by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
And here are some before-dinner staged shots of Mimetus. These too are focus stacked.
Pirate spider by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Pirate spider by Mark Sturtevant, on Flickr
Just a closing note. Although I did not get to see how Mimetus got the spider, it is often described that they fool their victim into thinking that they have prey trapped in the web, so the other spider attacks and gets a big surprise. But this is now disputed since the web vibrations that pirate spiders make do not resemble that of prey. So its been proposed that pirate spiders instead fool the other spider into thinking that they have a kleptoparasitic spider (which is a spider that enters webs to steal food. It happens). This causes the other spider to either ignore the interloper until its too late, or to approach to shoo them away.
Thanks for looking!
Mark Sturtevant
Dept. of Still Waters
Dept. of Still Waters
Re: The pirate spider
Nice photo essay. I love the profile view, and yes, maniacal is an apt description.
This reminds me of my first spider preying on spider. They were both on the porch stair rail. I noticed both some distance apart and not thinking anything nefarious afoot, I left the scene. Five minutes later it was all over. With no webbing involved, it looked like the victor just spewed gobs of digestive juices all over the prey. It wasn't pretty.
Anyway, sorry to distract but to the uninitiated, if you come across a setup, it could make for an interesting video or photo shoot.
This reminds me of my first spider preying on spider. They were both on the porch stair rail. I noticed both some distance apart and not thinking anything nefarious afoot, I left the scene. Five minutes later it was all over. With no webbing involved, it looked like the victor just spewed gobs of digestive juices all over the prey. It wasn't pretty.
Anyway, sorry to distract but to the uninitiated, if you come across a setup, it could make for an interesting video or photo shoot.
Re: The pirate spider
Great story and beautiful photos! Some people go for a walk with their dogs, others shoot cannibals
== thanks, Pawel
== thanks, Pawel
- MarkSturtevant
- Posts: 1957
- Joined: Sat Nov 21, 2015 6:52 pm
- Location: Michigan, U.S.A.
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Re: The pirate spider
Thank you. What you had there was possibly a spitting spider: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3FuhyXbnpoSym P. le wrote: ↑Fri Jun 04, 2021 12:06 amThis reminds me of my first spider preying on spider. They were both on the porch stair rail. I noticed both some distance apart and not thinking anything nefarious afoot, I left the scene. Five minutes later it was all over. With no webbing involved, it looked like the victor just spewed gobs of digestive juices all over the prey. It wasn't pretty.
Mark Sturtevant
Dept. of Still Waters
Dept. of Still Waters
Re: The pirate spider
Really nice work. I'm sorry you missed the moment of truth. I am sure you'll not stop until you do get it!
Re: The pirate spider
Interesting video. I don't think that's what I found but I was surprised by the volume of digestive enzymes that were exuded as the victor consumed its prey. The meal continued well into the next morning.
- svbreakaway
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Re: The pirate spider
Many here have probably read it, but in the gist of this thread's appreciation of spiders, a very entertaining sci-fi novel is Children of Time. It was the 2016 Arthur C. Clark Award winner. When it came to the inevitable showdown between the spiders and humans at the end, I was definitely cheering for the spiders.
Mike Niemi
Mike Niemi
Re: The pirate spider
Interesting video. When you shoot, it didn't find you.
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Re: The pirate spider
This is not a real poster.
- rjlittlefield
- Site Admin
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Re: The pirate spider
Maybe. But it's not a slam dunk. On the side of "not a real poster", we see broken English and IP addresses that trace to China while the nominal address is Los Angeles. On the other side, the website that appears in the signature does exist, talks about spiders, has a "contact us" page that lists the same email address that is registered here at PMN, and none of this information has been reported to StopForumSpam.com, despite the passage of some days since first registration here at PMN. I have sent email to the specified address and will be interested to see the reply, if any.
--Rik
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- Joined: Sat Apr 14, 2018 10:26 am
Re: The pirate spider
Read the site, it appears to be AI generated. The above post is contextually nonsensical and seems like it was drawn from sym p le's.
Re: The pirate spider
I seem to have taken this thread into uncharted territory. Sorry Mark.