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Tarantulas are hairy so that the United States Army ants cleanse their home do n’t eat them animated , a new study suggest .
The survey , published Aug. 6 in theJournal of Natural story , proposes several Modern approximation about tarantula relationships with other species , admit their amazingly inactive but still occasionally violent interaction with predatory ants .
Tarantulas have many social relationships with other species, including frogs, which feed on insects that could harm the spiders, researchers say.
Predatory ant , or army ants , are known to track down spiders active , but when these emmet were observed scavenging for food in South American European wolf spider burrows , the ants tend to disregard adult tarantula as well as Lycosa tarentula offspring . In the rare instances when the emmet did attack , the tarantula ' cockeyed whisker offer adequate protection .
" The dull hair covering the tarantula ’s body makes it unmanageable for the ants to bite or sting the spider , " sketch lead authorAlireza Zamani , an arachnologist at the University of Turku in Finland , say in astatement . " Therefore , we believe that the pilosity may have evolved as a defence mechanism . "
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Avicularia hirschiihanging from a leaf to escape army ants.
Zamani and his colleagues explored the complex relationship between tarantula and other fauna by reviewing previous scientific subject field and gathering new watching from the force field and social media .
The researchers found that USA ants help fossorial European wolf spider — those that live in burrow — by removing quondam food from their burrow . However , the spider still necessitate auspices in case the pismire sustain bitey . This fuzz - defense surmisal is supported byprevious studiesthat suggested burrowing Lycosa tarentula pass over their egg Sac in hair to aid stop emmet from make at them .
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what is more , the squad chance upon that less haired — and therefore potentially more vulnerable — arboreal tarantulas , includingAvicularia hirschiiin Peru , have educate unlike DoD strategies against ants . For example , in one notice , the researchers watchedA. hirschiihang from the tip of a leaf to hightail it ants on the hunt for prey , allot to the statement .
While tarantula - ant relationship can get laboured , the investigator chance that tarantulas enjoy friendlier interaction with amphibious vehicle , which sometimes go in their burrows . The study draw more than 60 partnerships between tarantulas and amphibian across 10 different countries , as well as relationships with snakes and other spiders .
" patently , the anuran and toads that dwell within the retreat of tarantula do good from the tax shelter and protection against their predators , " Zamani said . " In turn , they feed on insect that could be harmful to the spider , its eggs , and its juveniles . It seems that tarantulas might not be as scary and threatening as their reputation suggest . "
