Fabre's Observations (Scorpions, Spiders, Antlions)

Author: [French] Fabre, translated by Lorraine
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-09-01
Features: Excerpt: A straw with a head, gently rubbing and swaying at the entrance of the burrow. I immediately noticed that the jumping spider's attention and desire were both stimulated. It was drawn towards the straw and began to crawl towards it. When spiders hunt, they usually dash out of their burrows in a single leap to attack their prey, and this time was no exception. As it suddenly leaped out, before it could even think, I pulled the straw out of the burrow and quickly covered the entrance with it. This made the jumping spider panic and fluster, easily allowing me to force it into my paper bag, which I then sealed immediately.
Sometimes, if it suspected a trap or wasn’t hungry, it would stay at a certain distance from the burrow, choosing a spot where it thought I couldn’t reach it. Its patience was stronger than mine. In such cases, I had to switch tactics. After determining the direction of the burrow and the spider’s position, I used a blade to plunge diagonally into the burrow from behind, blocking its escape route. I rarely failed, especially on land with fewer rocks. At this point, the jumping spider might dash out of the burrow and flee, or stubbornly try to escape through the tunnel while desperately resisting my blade. At that moment, I would forcefully pry the blade upward, lifting both the spider and the soil chunks far away, thus capturing it. With this method, I sometimes caught 15 jumping spiders in just an hour.
Sometimes, when I extended the straw to the bend in its burrow, I would see it play with the straw with a look of disdain, pushing it away with its claws without retreating to the bottom of the burrow. I knew then that the jumping spider had completely recognized my trap, so I wasn’t surprised by its actions.
According to Bagley’s report, farmers in Bouillir also use oat spikes to mimic insect sounds at the burrow entrances to catch jumping spiders: ‘Local farmers, when trying to catch jumping spiders, would rub a spike of oats at the entrance to produce a sound like a bee flying. The spider, thinking a bee or other small insect had come, would dash out to catch it, only to fall into the cunning farmer’s hands.’
At first glance, the jumping spider appears quite frightening, especially when you consider its venomous fangs. However, despite its rough exterior, it is easily tamed, as I have demonstrated through numerous experiments.
On May 7, 1812, while living in Valencia, Spain, I encountered a rather large male jumping spider. I handled it gently, placing it in a short-necked, wide-mouthed glass jar, sealing the opening with paper and creating a hinged door in the center. At the bottom of the jar, I placed a conical paper bag as its home. I placed the jar on a table in my bedroom so I could observe it frequently. It quickly adapted to its secluded life and later became familiar with me, even coming to my fingertips to catch the live flies I provided. After biting its prey to death with its venomous fangs, it didn’t suck the prey’s head like most spiders do, but instead chewed the prey’s body, slowly feeding the fragments into its mouth with its antennae. Then, it would discard the leftover exoskeleton and sweep it far away from its dwelling.
After meals, it rarely forgot to groom itself, using the tarsal pads on its front legs to brush its antennae and the inner and outer surfaces of its mouthparts. After finishing this, it would once again become motionless, appearing solemn and dignified. At night and during the day, it was its time to roam. I often heard it scratching the paper bag. This habit confirmed my earlier observations in other publications: most spiders, like cats, have vision both during the day and at night.