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Science 16 December 1977:
Vol. 198. no. 4322, pp. 1173 - 1175
DOI: 10.1126/science.198.4322.1173
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Articles

Aggressive Chemical Mimicry by a Bolas Spider

WILLIAM G. EBERHARD 1

1 Departamento de Biología, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Colombia and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, P.O. Box 2072, Balboa, Canal Zone

Mature female Mastophora sp. spiders attract prey with a volatile substance which apparently mimics the female sex attractant pheromone of the fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera). The rate of prey capture is similar to that of a conventional orb weaver of comparable body size.

Submitted on May 31, 1977
Revised on August 25, 1977


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
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L. S. Saul-Gershenz and J. G. Millar (2006)
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Chemical Mimicry: Bolas Spiders Emit Components of Moth Prey Species Sex Pheromones.
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The Compleat Angler: Aggressive Mimicry in an Antennariid Anglerfish.
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