Freckle-size spider captures ant - Camponotus castaneus

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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » Aculeata - Ants, Bees and Stinging Wasps » Ants (Formicoidea) » Ants (Formicidae) » Formicinae » Camponotini » Carpenter Ants (Camponotus) » Subgenus Tanaemyrmex (Camponotus Subgenus Tanaemyrmex) » Chestnut Carpenter Ant (Camponotus castaneus)

Photo#1594300

Copyright © 2018 eaglebeach

Freckle-size spider captures ant - Camponotus castaneus

Tracys Landing, Anne Arundel County, Maryland, USA
September 20, 2018
Size: 1-2 mm

I saw this ant dangling in mid-air from weeds and took some pictures. After I took my last picture, I noticed the tiny gray spider which then retreated to the stem of the weed and disappeared. When I looked at my photo's of the "dangling ant", I have 4 pictures of the spider attending to different locations on the ant. The ant appears to remain in the same position as if paralyzed. The ant appears to be dangling from the yellow weed stem, silk approx. 3 times the ant's body length.

Any idea what this spider is? It is small but incredibly powerful to capture an ant.

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Contributed by eaglebeach on 21 September, 2018 - 2:36pm
Last updated 30 November, 2018 - 2:29pm

Moved

Moved from Frass.

… eaglebeach, 30 November, 2018 - 2:29pm

Moved

Moved from Frass.

… eaglebeach, 30 November, 2018 - 2:29pm

Frassed

Moved from Spiders. Spider is too small and image is too blurry to identify.

… Chad Heins, 30 November, 2018 - 1:38pm

OK. I had hoped that there were not many tiny spiders capable of killing an ant in the wild but I do understand that not much detail can be obtained regarding the spider in the photo.

I hope it is OK with you that I will unfrass and repost to the ant page. It is a decent picture of the ant and may be useful.

… eaglebeach, 30 November, 2018 - 2:29pm

Moved

Moved from ID Request.

… Kelsey J.R.P. Byers, 23 November, 2018 - 9:18pm

Well the ant is Camponotus ca

Well the ant is Camponotus castaneus. No idea on the spider.

… MrILoveTheAnts, 22 September, 2018 - 9:52am

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