Inverted roles: Spider predation upon Neotropical velvet worms (Epiperipatus spp.; Onychophora: Peripatidae)

Inverted roles: Spider predation upon Neotropical velvet worms (Epiperipatus spp.; Onychophora: Peripatidae)

Authors

  • Rosmery Franco Universidad de Pamplona
  • Julián Monge-Nájera Universidad Estatal a Distancia (UNED)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22458/urj.v8i2.1557

Keywords:

Predatory behavior, Neotropical invertebrates, spider venom and onychophorans

Abstract

 Velvet worms are ancient predators with Cambrian origins that occasionally prey on Ctenid spiders. Here we report the opposite case: wolf spiders (Ctenus spp.) feeding on Epiperipatus spp. in Colombia and Costa Rica. Apparently the worms could not expel their defensive adhesive, and the efficacy of the spider venom suggests that onychophoran nerves and muscles are biochemically equivalent to those of insects.

Author Biographies

Rosmery Franco, Universidad de Pamplona

 Departamento de Biología, Universidad de Pamplona, Pamplona, Norte de Santander, Colombia,

Julián Monge-Nájera, Universidad Estatal a Distancia (UNED)

Laboratorio de Ecología Urbana, Universidad Estatal a Distancia (UNED), 2050 San José, Costa Rica

References

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Published

2016-10-12

How to Cite

Franco, R., & Monge-Nájera, J. (2016). Inverted roles: Spider predation upon Neotropical velvet worms (Epiperipatus spp.; Onychophora: Peripatidae). UNED Research Journal, 8(2), 171–173. https://doi.org/10.22458/urj.v8i2.1557

Issue

Vol. 8 No. 2 (2016)

Section

Articles

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