CONSEQUENCES OF SEXUAL SELECTION ON FEEDING IN MALE JUMPING SPIDERS (ARANEAE, SALTICIDAE)

The chelicerae of male Myrmarachne plataleoides, a salticid spider fro m Sri Lanka, are about five times the length of those of conspecific f emales. Intrasexual selection is thought to account for this structura l dimorphism. The elongation of the male's chelicerae has resulted in morphological and behavioural differences in the feeding process of ma les and females. Males, unlike females, lack a fang duct and cannot en venom prey. During feeding, males use their fangs to skewer prey. The prey's contents are extracted from the holes in its cuticle where the spider's fangs protrude through the prey near the spider's mouth.