It really wasn't much of a contest. The Black and Yellow Mud Dauber's (Sceliphron caementarium) only hope was escaping from the Cobweb Spider's (Family Theridiidae) web -- and she could not.
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Such drama in the garden. I watched the opposite thing happen the other day. A big black wasp of some sort got a spider that was living in our patio doorway. I was so close yet couldn't get a shot of the action. I was too amazed by what I saw happening. Great Photos.
ReplyDeleteYes, several wasp species and even mud daubers specialize in hunting spiders, they just have to find a spider in the open. This particular mud dauber was building a nest nearby. I assume she became entangled in the spider's web on one of her many trips to the nest with mud.
ReplyDeleteWhat an unusual and great capture of the lucky spider versus unlucky mud dauber wasp.
ReplyDeleteSometimes the wasp larvae eats the spiders, and sometimes the spider eats the wasps. That's balance in nature.
ReplyDeleteNice photos,
Troy
in nature even the seemingly mighty can fall...
ReplyDeleteI love to watch spiders wrap up prey, but maybe not so much a mud dauber,which doesn't annoy me in the least.
ReplyDeleteWow...Great shots! Amazing what you see when you really stop to look.
ReplyDelete