Human blood is the preferred meal of the East African jumping wanderer , Evarcha culicivora , but the “ vampire spider ” does n’t fertilize directly on human beings . account as an indirect lamia , it preferentially selects mosquitos with a full belly of blood repast , and it ’s a diet that makes them more attractive to their vampire wanderer fellow .
The curious dietetic habit of lamia spider were put to the test in a2006 studythat used motionless lures made of dead insects to testE. culicivora ’s druthers . It ’s not surprising that they can be so selective as we knowdreaming leap out spidershavevery good eyesightand may evenrecognize each other .
The study concluded that these jumping spiders were the first predator recognized to actively select forAnophelesmosquitoes , which was bighearted newsworthiness because , as we all make love , mosquito spell bad news show . FemaleAnophelesare the world ’s deadliest animal according to theCenters for Disease Control and Prevention . Why ? Because they overspread so many diseases .
Malaria , dengue , West Nile , yellow fever , Zika , chikungunya , and lymphatic filariasis are just a few diseases spread out by mosquitoes , meaning they bolt down more hoi polloi than any other beast in the universe .
A specialized vulture likeE. culicivoracould therefore be view as a biologic control for the blood - sucking disease vectors , though as chronicle has instruct us , a lot of care needs to be taken when deciding if it ’s safe or practical to wield wild fauna as a soma of contagion control .
Vampire spiders ’ affinity for bloodsucking mosquitoes does n’t bar at the dinner table , either , as a2009 paperrevealed that it influences mate pick , too . “ WhenE. culicivorafeeds indirectly on lineage , it learn a diet - related odor that make believe it more attractive to the opposite sex , ” explained the authors .
“ Both sexes ofE. culicivoraspent more sentence faithful to the olfactory property of opposite - sex conspecific that had been on a diet of bloodfed mosquito ( blood dieting ) instead of any of the three nonblood diets . polar - sex conspecifics that had been on a nonblood diet became more attractive once they were throw to a profligate diet . That the attractive odor from blood dissipates was record when spiders became less attractive once they were switch to a nonblood diet or subjected to a fast . ”
A strange critter indeed , and our ancestry is n’t the only affair they find attractive . Aglamorous studythat presented lamia spiders with two identical sock – one that had been tire for 12 hours and another that was boxful - invigorated – showed that they are drawn to our unsportsmanlike washables . The attraction is probably connected to the olfactory sensitivity that string them to bloodsucking mosquitoes , so could become part of their world power in the fight against mosquitoes .
[ H / T : Discover Magazine ]
