New Zealand Journal of Zoology abstracts

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Predation by ants on jumping spiders (Araneae: Salticidae) in the Philippines

Ximena J. Nelson
Robert R. Jackson*

School of Biological Sciences
University of Canterbury
Private Bag 4800
Christchurch, New Zealand
email: robert.jackson@canterbury.ac.nz

Simon D. Pollard

Canterbury Museum
Rolleston Avenue
Christchurch, New Zealand

G. B. Edwards

Florida State Collection of Arthropods
Division of Plant Industry
Gainesville, Florida 32614-7100
USA

Alberto T. Barrion

Entomology Division
International Rice Research Institute
Manila 1099
Philippines ICIPE

*Author for correspondence.

Abstract  Using a tropical fauna from the Philippines as a case study, ant-salticid predator-prey relationships were investigated. In the field, 41 observations of ant predation on salticids were made, and the actual attack on the salticid was seen in four. In the laboratory, five of the ant genera observed in the field were tested with four categories of salticids: (1) four myrmecophagic (i.e., ant-eating) species, (2) six myrmecomorphic (i.e., ant-like) species, (3) an ant-associate species (i.e., a species that is neither myrmecophagic nor myrmecomorphic, but known to associate with ants), and (4) 14 ordinary species (i.e., species that are neither ant-eating nor ant-like, and are not known to associate with ants). In these tests the highest survival rates were observed in the myrmecophagic salticids, followed by the myrmecomorphic salticids, the ant-associate species, and finally the ordinary species.

Keywords  spiders; ants; mimicry; myrmecomorphy; myrmecophagy; predation

Z03005; Online publication date 4 March 2004; Received 21 February 2003; accepted 7 August 2003
New Zealand Journal of Zoology, 2004, Vol. 31: 45-56
0301-4223/04/3101-0045 © The Royal Society of New Zealand 2004

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