How Much Meat Do Spiders Eat?
WouterIf you think that spiders only eat bugs, you would be surprised. The truth is that they eat many types of animals. They can eat small birds, reptiles, and lizards. But they do not eat beef, pork, or chicken.
Spiders have two fangs and a straw-like mouth to suck their prey. They also use vibration and taste to find their prey. Most spiders eat insects, but some eat vertebrates.
Researchers estimate that spiders consume between 400 million and 800 million tons of insects, bugs, and other invertebrates annually. This is almost three times the amount of meat humans consume in a year.
Using published data, scientists calculated how much food spiders need to eat in order to survive. A spider can go as long as 30 days without eating. It’s not uncommon for a spider to eat as much as 2,000 insects a year.
Another interesting fact about spiders is that they eat a lot of plants. There are about 40,000 species of spiders in the world. In addition to their diet, these creatures play an important role in controlling insect pests.
For example, Black Widows are known to go up to 30 days without food. But they’ll also eat seeds and pollen. Some species eat insects such as ants, cockroaches, and wasps. Orb weavers, however, are known to eat wasps on a daily basis.
Scientists have recently discovered that more than 60 spider species actually consume veggie matter. These include Bhageera kiplingi, a spider that eats nectar, plant products, and sap.
