6533b830fe1ef96bd129795f

RESEARCH PRODUCT

DISPERSAL OF STEGODYPHUS DUMICOLA (ARANEAE, ERESIDAE): THEY DO BALLOON AFTER ALL!

Yael LubinJutta M. SchneiderJ. R. HenschelJörg Roos

subject

SpiderbiologyEcologyInsect ScienceStegodyphus dumicolaBiological dispersalZoologybiology.organism_classificationSocial spiderBallooningStegodyphus

description

Abstract There has been some controversy about whether adult females of social Stegodyphus disperse by ballooning. Here we show that adult Stegodyphus dumicola (Eresidae) Pocock 1898 are able to gain up-lift by releasing a very large number of threads. The threads fan out widely from the spider's body and form a triangular sheet. This previously unknown ballooning mechanism, enables even large spiders to disperse over large distances.

https://doi.org/10.1636/0161-8202(2001)029[0114:dosdae]2.0.co;2