Tarantula eating a scorpion

[BrettG]

I have seen a desert hairy and a chalcodes(4 plus inches) go at it in the Superstition mts down here,and it wasnt pretty. The scorpion more or less owned the tarantula..Pretty crazy sight to stumble upon..

 

[Crows Arachnids]

I have seen this as well, however the scorpion was obliterated.

 

[super-pede]

I've had a 4 in H.mac make it's way into a 6in+ subspinipes jar and the centipede died a few days later after having a fuzzy 8 legged meal.

 

[cacoseraph]

all things equal, money is on the scorp


centipedes do have a more decentralized nervous system... so they can get hell mangled out of them and keep fighting... but out on the flats a scorpion would handle them. put them in the right size tunnel and a centipede might stand a better chance

tarantulas have that big ol' abdomen just begging to be ripped open. once they get a bad abdominal tear they are going to have hemolymphatic pressure drop and lose extension control of their limbs

 

[ZergFront]

Probably would depend on either's venom toxicity, weight and how the battle progressed. If the scorpion got the abdomen of the T or maybe between the plates/joints, it could wreck havoc.

 

[mattrgraham]

I meant in the wild. Anyone know of any published encounters of tarantulas eating scorpions, or visa versa?

 

[Vespula]

Now what I'd like to see thrown into the mix is 9in wasps.

Nine inch wasps... that would make my day.

 

[cacoseraph]

i just remembered when i was digging up Calisoga (pretty much tarantulas with tiny difference) i found scorpion parts in the spiders' boneyards. the scorpions looked like they would be 1/4 the mass of the spider at most. a few times i actually startled little scorpions into running down various spider holes... i bet some of them got turned into lunch

there were tarantulas in the same area, so i expect they were munching on scorpions, too

 

[gvfarns]

Haha, this is kind of a juvenile topic, but that doesn't mean it's not interesting.

Couple of points to remember as we think about this

1. Equal size is a strange assumption. That only happens with a very LARGE scorpion and small tarantula. If you were to take a random scorp and a random T, the T would be much larger.

2. T's are ambush predators as has been pointed out. If you toss them in a jar with anything pretty much they seem like they get owned. They don't usually attack unless something wanders into their territory and they are waiting for it. Scorpions and especially centipedes will attack whatever comes along so they have an advantage unless they are tossed into a tarantula cage.

3. Toxicity of venom is all but irrelevant. If one of these creatures envenomates the other, the latter will die. Plus tarantulas, at least, do very little with their venom as a rule while hunting. They don't bite and wait for venom to do it's work, they overpower and mulch whatever they are attacking. It's a question of aggression, agility, strength, and build. And luck. A big scorpion would be very effective at attacking just about any T.

Centipedes are pretty voracious, but I tend to think they would get worked by tarantulas unless there is quite a bit of size difference. T's pounce fast (if they pounce at all) and then they don't let go. That puts the centipede in a difficult position. Scorpions, on the other hand, can sting the heck out of a tarantula even if they are being fanginated. I can easily imagine a tarantula-scorpion encounter in which they both die.

 

[Bill S]

I meant in the wild. Anyone know of any published encounters of tarantulas eating scorpions, or visa versa?

I haven't seen encounters in the wild between scorpions and tarantulas, but I've seen true spiders (Loxosceles and black widows) feasting on Centruroides scorpions in the wild. In both the scorpions are notably bigger than the spider, and the spider won the contest. Loxosceles spiders also eat centipedes (I've mostly seen Scolopendra polymorpha wrapped in silk).

 

[Lor&Chris]

Most Ts are not very slow
(Just cause someone said they are lol)

 

[Vespula]

It could possibly happen in the wild, But I've personally not seen it.

 

[gvfarns]

I haven't seen encounters in the wild between scorpions and tarantulas, but I've seen true spiders (Loxosceles and black widows) feasting on Centruroides scorpions in the wild. In both the scorpions are notably bigger than the spider, and the spider won the contest. Loxosceles spiders also eat centipedes (I've mostly seen Scolopendra polymorpha wrapped in silk).

The tangling up the web might be considered an unfair advantage in that case, though, right? Spiders that catch prey using their webs eat all sorts of things that would demolish them in a hand to hand combat situation, so to speak. Tarantulas, which characteristically do not use their webs in this way, wouldn't have this advantage.

Still that's an interesting observation. i wish I lived somewhere where I could observe this kind of thing.

 

[Pociemon]

The tangling up the web might be considered an unfair advantage in that case, though, right? Spiders that catch prey using their webs eat all sorts of things that would demolish them in a hand to hand combat situation, so to speak. Tarantulas, which characteristically do not use their webs in this way, wouldn't have this advantage.

Still that's an interesting observation. i wish I lived somewhere where I could observe this kind of thing.

Animals use the tools they have at their disposal. No unfair thing in that. Spiders takes what they can regardless of what the prey is. It is part of life.
Tarantulas do take both scorpions and centipedes in nature, and they typically surprise them from their burrow, or in the burrow. And it is almost exclusevely males that encounter scorps/pedes in the open, and they are usually smaller than females. But i guess a big blondi male is no pushover for either a scorp or a pede in the open though.
but i am sure most of these encounters in the open will never happen, because they typically prefer to run and find easyir prey instead of taking a big risk. I have turned many rocks, and i have seen T´s and scorps under the same rocks, and they did not fight. I am sure it will only happen if the food in the area they live is very limited and they are forced to eat.

All this about scorps and centipedes living of T´s is really a lot of bs. And dont look at youtube, everyone can find a video there that suits their purpose.

 

[NevularScorpion]

a nine inch scorpion maybe.

check this out, the centi got eaten by a fat tail sp equal its size . scorpion rules

http://www.flickr.com/photos/artour_a/4298575699/

 

[robinsonxcr]

i just remembered when i was digging up Calisoga (pretty much tarantulas with tiny difference) i found scorpion parts in the spiders' boneyards. the scorpions looked like they would be 1/4 the mass of the spider at most. a few times i actually startled little scorpions into running down various spider holes... i bet some of them got turned into lunch

there were tarantulas in the same area, so i expect they were munching on scorpions, too

I've also found scorpion left overs in local Utah t burrows

 

[Versi*JP*Color]

Hi what's up fellow Utahn!!

 

[Ceratogyrus]

I dont have any records/pictures, but we own a game farm in south africa that has tons of A.junodi. I often mark burrows and sneak up at night to see what the spiders are up to. Checked up on a burrow of a 12cm or so female A.junodi the one morning and it had remains of a P.transvaalicus (thick tail scorpion) outside. I would guess the scorpions size with tail outstretched around the same size as the spider(12cm). She obviously had a good meal and was around for a long time after, so obviously got lucky.

 

[brian abrams]

T vs Scorp vs Cent

Quite awhile back, I stumbled across a Japanese site that pitted every conceivable insect/arachnid against all others. And most of the time, the T held it's own. Also, it depends on the size and type of T used in the matches. The Scorps and Pedes usually owned the Rosehairs; but if I remember correctly, the KBB's, which had a noticeable size advantage, destroyed all their opponents.