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A collective web of Agelena consociata in Uganda.. A social spider is a spider species whose individuals form relatively long-lasting aggregations.Whereas most spiders are solitary and even aggressive toward other members of their own species, some hundreds of species in several families show a tendency to live in groups, often referred to as colonies.
A unique behavior of this tarantula is that it is communal, to the point that mother spiders care for the young, even attacking potential predators if they get too close to her egg sac. In captivity, multiple males and females of different ages may live together without attacking one another, provided that they have enough food and proper care.
Males mature faster, and die a few weeks after mating. [13] Namibian female spiders have been found to mature from January to the middle of the summer, produce eggs from February to March, and live until April to June to take care of the brood and later be consumed by the kin. Adult females are the ones who leave to create new colonies. [10]
These tarantulas will eat other invertebrates, such as crickets, cockroaches, butterflies, moths [3] and other spiders or small vertebrates, such as mice, lizards, frogs, snakes and occasionally birds. They are also known to be one of the only swimming spiders and will occasionally dive to catch fish.
Spiders have been observed to grab onto the prey's leg and move away into an area when none of the spiders can see it eating first. Otherwise, all the individuals in the nest eat together, breaking away different portions to jointly divide the meal. Communal feeding occurs even with spiders who may not have taken part in the prey capture.
Tarantulas normally hunt by staying in their burrows and waiting for their prey to come to them, according to a Texas A&M field guide. Their prey includes crickets, beetles, grasshoppers, cicadas ...
Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. [2] As of December 2023, 1,100 species have been identified, with 166 genera. [3] The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although many other members of the same infraorder (Mygalomorphae) are commonly referred to as "tarantulas" or "false tarantulas".
Luckily, spiders eat mostly insects -- especially the ones you may also find in your home. But as spiders get bigger, so do their prey, and larger arachnids feast on lizards, birds and small mammals.