It’s a fabulous shot from the camera of Avalus, who says
PZ’s post (Pharyngula) https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2021/04/07/spider-deaths/ reminded me of a photo I took last weekend.
Tiny spider eats really big spider, somehow this really surprised me. I wonder how she was caught. The photo does not really give the bulk of the prey justice.
©Avalus, All rights reserved
That’s a great capture, Avalus. I apologize for the delay in posting it.
Look at the legs on the pholcid. What they do is walk over their prey like a giant crane and rain down silk to immobilize it. The poor victim can’t even reach the body of the predator to fight back.
Pholcus is one of my least favorite spiders — they roam around killing other spiders, in particular, my friends the common house spider.
I have seen a similar show of carnage yesterday evening in our restroom, where this spider was eating a woodlouse. I did not fetch my camera though, for I was barely able to walk.