Jumping Spiders Are Often Abused | Spider Control

Not only jumping spiders, but many female spiders from different families enjoying eating the male after mating. However, the blood-drinking jumping spiders of East Africa include males that consume females more often than the other way around. Surprisingly, despite the risk that the female jumping spiders are making for themselves, virgin female jumping spiders will often choose the largest male for mating. The larger a female jumping spiders mate, the more likely the male is to eat her post-mating.

Strangely enough, this female preference for larger male jumping spiders does not last. Once the females get to be older, if they live long enough, they will choose smaller, and therefore safer males for mating.

Past research has shown that male jumping spiders are more likely to cannibalize smaller prey. In the new study an entomologist put this theory to the test. The researchers took four different male jumping spiders of various sizes and set them up in front of a live female jumping spider. The researchers found that the virgin female jumping spiders did go after the male jumping spiders with larger bodies. However, after a female jumping spider loses her virginity, she no longer shows a preference for larger males. In fact, female jumping spiders prefer smaller sized mates for all mating encounter that follow their first mating encounter.

Although the larger males can be more dangerous to females than smaller males, there are advantages to mating with a larger male. A female may get pregnant during her first encounter, this will ensure that her children are more fit while a smaller male spider provides without causing any threats to the safety of the female and her offspring. Females may also eat smaller males sometimes in order to prevent from being eaten themselves.

Have you ever heard of a “blood-sucking” spider?