Abstract

FRANCO, Rosmery  and  MONGE-NAJERA, Julián. Inverted roles: Spider predation upon Neotropical velvet worms ( Epiperipatus spp.; Onychophora: Peripatidae). Cuadernos de Investigación UNED [online]. 2016, vol.8, n.2, pp.171-173. ISSN 1659-4266.  http://dx.doi.org/10.22458/urj.v8i2.1557.

Velvet worms are ancient predators with Cambrian origins that occasionally prey on Ctenid spiders. Here we report the opposite case: wolf spiders (Ctenus spp.) feeding on Epiperipatus spp. in Colombia and Costa Rica. Apparently the worms could not expel their defensive adhesive, and the efficacy of the spider venom suggests that onychophoran nerves and muscles are biochemically equivalent to those of insects.

Keywords : Predatory behavior; Neotropical invertebrates; spider venom and onychophorans.

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