Fringed jumping spider

Description:

Cannibalism - Portia fimbriata feeding on a male It is a well known fact that in some species of spiders the female consumes its male counterpart before, during, or after copulation. Some species even display non-reproductive cannibalism where the female will prey on its own kind when food is scarce. This female Portia fimbriata had occupied a corner of my room, just under the roof for a few days. I used to observe her regularly. Her menu consisted of a few insects but a lot more spiders. Typically I would find her feeding on "Smeringopus pallidus" or Loxosceles sp. But one evening she had a Salticidae in her grasp. On closer observation I realized it was an "adult male Portia fimbriata"!!! The dead male was facing toward the wall, I had to wait for quiet a long time for the female to eventually turn him towards me. She had almost finished feeding by then and the inner contents of the male seemed empty as seen in the picture. As the feeding progressed the exoskeleton turned into a mush until only one of the limbs and a small chunk of the mush was left over. She then assumed her usual "cuddled up" posture in the web and nothing much happened after that. The male might have either failed or succeeded in mating with her prior to be killed. :-) In the background you can see a dead half eaten fly and the limbs of Smeringopus pallidus spider which was her previous meal. :-)

Habitat:

Urban