Prey composition of three Dipoena species (Araneae: Theridiidae) specializing on ants

Abstract

We examined species and size compositions of prey in the three Dipoena spiders specializing on ants. Dipoena punctisparsa fed exclusively on small ants, Lasius. In this spider, the number of prey fed at a time increased with the spider body size. Dipoena castrata mainly captured Componotus and Lasius, and most spiders fed on a single prey. The body size of prey fed upon by this species increased with the spider size. Dipoena mustelina captured a variety of ant species, ranging from very small to large ones.