So fascinating! The belly really is so pink. The intensity of a creature's color is often influenced by diet, so maybe the berries did have an impact, in this instance.
Bolas spiders are so fascinating! Rather than making a web to capture prey, they produce a single line of strong silk with a sticky ball at the end, which they fling at their prey. When the sticky ball makes contact with prey, the spider pulls it back in—much like a yo-yo. Hunting with a sticky yo-yo is pretty cool. But, it gets better. Adult, female bolas spiders only catch male moths. Why?! Well, the spiders have the amazing ability to produce a chemical cocktail that mimics the sex pheromones of a female moth. Innocent, sex-starved, male moths are attracted to the pheromones and come close enough for the spider to strike by flinging her sticky yo-yo at him. Each species of bolas spider can blend chemical compounds to successfully mimic the pheromones of MULTIPLE species of moths! In addition to being masters of chemical deception, bolas spiders are also visually cryptic. During the day, they hide in plain sight from predators by mimicking bird poop. If disturbed, they emit a stinky smell to further deter the potential predator. {Mastophora phrynosoma spotted in Pennsylvania, USA by JungleDragon user, FrannySopranny} #JungleDragon
41 y/o Female
Bolas spiders are so fascinating! Rather than making a web to capture prey, they produce a single line of strong silk with a sticky ball at the end, which they fling at their prey. When the sticky ball makes contact with prey, the spider pulls it back in—much like a yo-yo. Hunting with a sticky yo-yo is pretty cool. But, it gets better. Adult, female bolas spiders only catch male moths. Why?! Well, the spiders have the amazing ability to produce a chemical cocktail that mimics the sex pheromones of a female moth. Innocent, sex-starved, male moths are attracted to the pheromones and come close enough for the spider to strike by flinging her sticky yo-yo at him. Each species of bolas spider can blend chemical compounds to successfully mimic the pheromones of MULTIPLE species of moths! In addition to being masters of chemical deception, bolas spiders are also visually cryptic. During the day, they hide in plain sight from predators by mimicking bird poop. If disturbed, they emit a stinky smell to further deter the potential predator. {Mastophora phrynosoma spotted in Pennsylvania, USA by JungleDragon user, FrannySopranny} #JungleDragon