Spiders can be
predators of wasps, but sometimes the relationship is reversed and the spider becomes the prey. This summer I watched a dramatic encounter that unfolded too quickly for me to capture on camera. A spider was sitting on a leaf at the end of a tree branch while a large wasp hunted nearby. As the wasp drew near, the spider edged away and then dropped down a thread to hang in mid-air. For a few moments, it appeared that the spider had escaped the wasp's attention -- but then the wasp struck. I had a brief glimpse of the wasp and spider grappling each other before they plummeted to the ground. By the time they landed, the spider was already paralyzed or dead.
Not all spiders are so easily subdued, however. Take, for example, the black-and-yellow argiope, one of the largest orbweaver spiders in North America (along with the
giant lichen spider and the golden silk spider).
As I was photographing this very imposing spider, a wasp came up and hovered to inspect the spider too.
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| A wasp approaches the orbweaver spider. |
If the disparity in size wasn't already enough to discourage the wasp from taking further action, a wave of the spider's legs seemed to complete the message.
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| The orbweaver spider waving its legs. |
The wasp retreated, leaving the spider undisturbed.
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