Pest Management Professional, May 2015
Crawly backs are lumbering grubs Fig 2 Damage to landscape caused by a raccoon foraging for grubs and it would be hazardous for them to expose themselves on the surface of the ground If a grub is exposed when turning the soil it will quickly burrow back into the substrate and disappear below ground The plant pots where this spider was located had soil in them left over from last years planting but no plants were present in the pots at the time of this discovery I do not believe the larva emerged from the soil of the pots and fell out into the spiders web below because the soil level in the pots was 2 in below the lip of the container Given the mode of locomotion of crawly backs a specimen is not likely to surmount this smooth surface gap and crawl out of the pot To caTch a predaTor When I first discovered the grub hanging in the spiders web I poked it several times with a dissecting needle but it did not move It might have been envenomed by the spider to subdue it Even though it was moribund it was still fresh and pliable Careful observations during daylight hours did not reveal the presence of a spider Because of the presence of a small web though I suspected that a spider was responsible for this entrapment Experience with the western black widow spider Latrodectus hesperus in Southern California informed me the best time to look for a possible assassin was during the FigS 3 4 Spider on larva top night Female black widow Spider on side of larva bottom spiders are known to avoid light during the day and remain hidden in protected retreats Subsequent nocturnal inspections during five days revealed a spider with a red hourglass marking on the underside of its abdomen spending considerable time on the C mutabilis grub Figs 3 and 4 When trying to photograph the spider on the larva in darkness I focused a flashlight beam on it After a few mypmp net Pest Management Professional May 2015 85 Photos Dr hanif GulmahamaD
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