Inverted roles: Spider predation upon Neotropical velvet worms ( Epiperipatus spp.; Onychophora: Peripatidae)
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.
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| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Digital revista |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Universidad Estatal a Distancia de Costa Rica
2016
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| Online Access: | http://www.scielo.sa.cr/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1659-42662016000200171 |
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