The first insects,developing 350 million years ago,were probably scavengers,nibbling on the remains of dead animals and plants.
Their older relatives,the spiders ,which go back 400 million years,probably have been predacious from the start.
But since then,insects and spiders have diversified enormously.
The more than one million insect species and 30,000 spider species have become highly specialized in the foods they eat and the ways in which they get their food.
Most spiders entrap their victims.Most insects are plant eaters,but some hunt or stalk prey,and other lurk in ambush.
Even ants may be hunters,sharing their prey with their nest mates through a system of scent communication.
Certain mosquito larvae simply turn and gobble up other mosquito larvae.
In many insects,such as the dragonfly larva and praying mantis,body parts have evolved into tools for seizing prey.
The larva of fungus gnats,called glow-worms,not only set traps for their prey but lure their victims with a blue light.
Some fireflies send false signals that trap other fireflies and one family of insect,the termites,uses other organisms to help them digest the wood they eat as they carve out their homes in trees and timber.
This chapter looks at these and other diverse methods the insects and spiders have found to feed themselves.
Although they are both arthropods, these animals capture their food in different ways.
The spider spins a net called an orb web and then waits to capture the insects that stray onto its threads.
The dragonfly nymph flips out its lower lip with surprising speed to seize its prey.
Their older relatives,the spiders ,which go back 400 million years,probably have been predacious from the start.
But since then,insects and spiders have diversified enormously.
The more than one million insect species and 30,000 spider species have become highly specialized in the foods they eat and the ways in which they get their food.
Most spiders entrap their victims.Most insects are plant eaters,but some hunt or stalk prey,and other lurk in ambush.
Even ants may be hunters,sharing their prey with their nest mates through a system of scent communication.
Certain mosquito larvae simply turn and gobble up other mosquito larvae.
In many insects,such as the dragonfly larva and praying mantis,body parts have evolved into tools for seizing prey.
The larva of fungus gnats,called glow-worms,not only set traps for their prey but lure their victims with a blue light.
Some fireflies send false signals that trap other fireflies and one family of insect,the termites,uses other organisms to help them digest the wood they eat as they carve out their homes in trees and timber.
This chapter looks at these and other diverse methods the insects and spiders have found to feed themselves.
Although they are both arthropods, these animals capture their food in different ways.
The spider spins a net called an orb web and then waits to capture the insects that stray onto its threads.
The dragonfly nymph flips out its lower lip with surprising speed to seize its prey.
