Cluster of Dead Wolf Spiders

[8 legged]

It is possible that successful reproduction took place in your basement or somewhere else in the house (garden). Perhaps the animals (due to temperature, etc.) stayed indoors. They are definitely siblings and a wolf spider territory is mini by our standards! Dozens of animals can be found in a few square meters without getting in each other's way. During the hunt they became victims themselves. Several young Lycosas escaped me once. I had them with their mother and noticed too late that they became independent... the ventilation holes were too big for the spiderlings. I gradually found them in the webs of Pholcidae. Wolf spiders appear to be quite nutritious.

 

[marjorielester453]

It is possible that successful reproduction took place in your basement or somewhere else in the house (garden). Perhaps the animals (due to temperature, etc.) stayed indoors. They are definitely siblings and a wolf spider territory is mini by our standards! Dozens of animals can be found in a few square meters without getting in each other's way. During the hunt they became victims themselves. Several young Lycosas escaped me once. I had them with their mother and noticed too late that they became independent... the ventilation holes were too big for the spiderlings. I gradually found them in the webs of Pholcidae. Wolf spiders appear to be quite nutritious.

I like that answer.

 

[Albireo Wulfbooper]

Yeah, these look like victims of pholcids to me. You have well-fed roommates.

 

[Jonathan6303]

Ok guys I found MORE. I dunno how I got so lucky, BUT. This little cluster only had 2. I have taken a bunch of pics. This is the exact ones from the previous cluster so I'm guessing when I moved this bookshelf, they were all under there and just got moved under the hutch, where I found the 1st big cluster. I've included some pics of the bottom of the bookshelf because I flipped it over and hoped that it would have an answer. No answer. There WAS some "grass like stuff" caught underneath from one of our great dane's toys. So mystery deepens? Or does any of this new evidence help any of you to any new conclusions??? I tried to take pictures of the dead spiders from every angle I could and include my finger and pen so you could see the size. So remember, the first cluster I found was torn in 2 and had around 10+ of these same exact spiders in it, which I believe are wolf spiders.

No doubt that that was a cobwebs work. Crazy stuff

 

[marjorielester453]

that means that around 15 of these things were all victims. So crazy. Thank yall for caring about this like me LOL Just had never seen anything like that before, was really cool.

 

[marjorielester453]

Yeah, these look like victims of pholcids to me. You have well-fed roommates.

We do get an awful lot of cobwebs in this 50+ year old house out here. I'm sure there are PLENTY of pholcids around. Especially being as far out in the country as we are, but the cool part about that is that I constantly get to see really cool bugs and animals. It's funny to me that jumping spiders are so big in the hobby right now because I have the most beautiful out here and BIG ones. Thinking maybe this spring when they all sprout back out I'll catch a few and try to grow them up. They're always in the house around the windows.

 

[The Snark]

that means that around 15 of these things were all victims.

Pholcids are a little peculiar when it comes to prey capture. They will go after every victim that enters their web, even if they already have breakfast, lunch, dinner and midnight snacks lined up. I'm not sure what triggers this but I think it's a combination of them being a bit klutzy capturing prey and jump at every possible opportunity and prey capture is part of their survival instinct. I have never seen them fake death curls. Always combative until the web gets heavily damaged. Then they just run off and make a new one. Hiding simply isn't in their play book.
And of course, other spiders entering their web never stand a chance. Escape is the only option.

 

[marjorielester453]

Pholcids are a little peculiar when it comes to prey capture. They will go after every victim that enters their web, even if they already have breakfast, lunch, dinner and midnight snacks lined up. I'm not sure what triggers this but I think it's a combination of them being a bit klutzy capturing prey and jump at every possible opportunity and prey capture is part of their survival instinct I have never seen them fake death curls. Always combative until the web gets heavily damaged. Then they just run off and make a new one. Hiding simply isn't in their play book.

That's super interesting! I've always thought they were cool, but have never done much research on that particular one. I'm sure they're not considered very high on the chain in their world, probably why they're like that?

 

[The Snark]

I'm sure they're not considered very high on the chain in their world, probably why they're like that?

I'm baffled by their behavior. This one didn't care at all it was out in the open in a very transient location. Also didn't care I carried the cup up through the house and set it on the porch railing for a good picture.

 

[Albireo Wulfbooper]

Yeah Pholcids are boss. Somehow my apartment maintains a huge population of Steatoda and Cheiracanthium, as well as a fair few jumpers, despite also being home to a large number of Pholcids - I assume they've all agreed to stay in their separate corners since there's always plenty of moths to be eaten. We also get tiny parasitic wasps every summer, some of which are spider parasites. It's a whole dang ecosystem.

 

[marjorielester453]

Yeah Pholcids are boss. Somehow my apartment maintains a huge population of Steatoda and Cheiracanthium, as well as a fair few jumpers, despite also being home to a large number of Pholcids - I assume they've all agreed to stay in their separate corners since there's always plenty of moths to be eaten. We also get tiny parasitic wasps every summer, some of which are spider parasites. It's a whole dang ecosystem.

That's kind of how it is out here. Little bit if not lots of everything lol In the summer, I swear every year, there are new insects I hadn't seen the year before. Just tonight, it's 26 degrees outside and I'm laying in bed with my 3yo daughter while she falls asleep and this roach/beetle just shows up out of nowhere on her pillow, so I took it outside, but I'm like 26 degrees dude, where the hell did you even come from?? But yes those Pholcids seem very nonchalant about their surroundings.

 

[marjorielester453]

I'm baffled by their behavior. This one didn't care at all it was out in the open in a very transient location. Also didn't care I carried the cup up through the house and set it on the porch railing for a good picture.

They must have the type of attitude like "KILL EVERYTHING, F*CK IT". I could totally see that.

 

[The Snark]

Your major problem is if pholcids make their webs down in corners on the floor. Then thery are in the hunting territory of the others. Messing up their webs and encouraging to build up at the ceiling keeps accidental victims to a minimum. Get them to abandon their low slung webs then place them on something high up like the tops of book cases. They usually start a new web as soon as they find a location where they can string webs between two surfaces. Also keeping them high up helps protect jumpers from rappeling into their webs.

 

[marjorielester453]

Your major problem is if pholcids make their webs down in corners on the floor. Then thery are in the hunting territory of the others. Messing up their webs and encouraging to build up at the ceiling keeps accidental victims to a minimum. Get them to abandon their low slung webs then place them on something high up like the tops of book cases. They usually start a new web as soon as they find a location where they can string webs between two surfaces. Also keeping them high up helps protect jumpers from rappeling into their webs.

That's WONDERFUL advice thank you!!!

 

[Albireo Wulfbooper]

Your major problem is if pholcids make their webs down in corners on the floor. Then thery are in the hunting territory of the others. Messing up their webs and encouraging to build up at the ceiling keeps accidental victims to a minimum. Get them to abandon their low slung webs then place them on something high up like the tops of book cases. They usually start a new web as soon as they find a location where they can string webs between two surfaces. Also keeping them high up helps protect jumpers from rappeling into their webs.

I encourage my Steatoda to make webs along the path of the ants that invade every summer. Carefully avoid sweeping those areas. Put extra stuff there for attachment points. At the end of ant season there's always an enormous pile of ant corpses at every location where I've encouraged Steatoda. Fantastic pest control.

 

[marjorielester453]

I encourage my Steatoda to make webs along the path of the ants that invade every summer. Carefully avoid sweeping those areas. Put extra stuff there for attachment points. At the end of ant season there's always an enormous pile of ant corpses at every location where I've encouraged Steatoda. Fantastic pest control.

I absolutely love that! Natural pest control! Thank you so much for the great advice!

 

[The Snark]

I encourage my Steatoda to make webs along the path of the ants that invade every summer.

Fascinating. I don't know Steatoda webs. Do they have multiple sticky lines? Or is all the webbing sticky? That's a classical example of an enigma in nature. Neither family has anything to do with the other in any aspects of their lives. Purely accidental incidental pest control.
I wish we had something like that in the tropics but it would take several thousand steatoda per room to cope with the seasonal ant invasions.

 

[Albireo Wulfbooper]

Fascinating. I don't know Steatoda webs. Do they have multiple sticky lines? Or is all the webbing sticky? That's a classical example of an enigma in nature. Neither family has anything to do with the other in any aspects of their lives. Purely accidental incidental pest control.
I wish we had something like that in the tropics but it would take several thousand steatoda per room to cope with the seasonal ant invasions.

I think it's all sticky, or at least certainly a good chunk of it is. Annoying to clean up at the end of the season but better than dealing with ants!

 

[darkness975]

Fascinating. I don't know Steatoda webs. Do they have multiple sticky lines? Or is all the webbing sticky? That's a classical example of an enigma in nature. Neither family has anything to do with the other in any aspects of their lives. Purely accidental incidental pest control.
I wish we had something like that in the tropics but it would take several thousand steatoda per room to cope with the seasonal ant invasions.

They resemble Latrodectus webs. They even behave like them and will often aggressively pull passing prey items into the web like a net from the floor anchored trip lines.

 

[The Snark]

hey resemble Latrodectus webs. They even behave like them and will often aggressively pull passing prey items into the web like a net from the floor anchored trip lines.

So the dead ants were opportunity kills as the spider protected it's web? Or do those spiders actually feed on ants? A natural resistance / tolerance to formic acid?