[Odonata-l] Jumping spiders using exuviae for "homes"

[Erland Refling Nielsen]

Hi Tim and all

Interesting to hear about your observations, I have not heard of spiders having that behaviour. Your post made me think of an incident I captured with my camera in late April this year. A damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula, Large Red Damselfly) had failed emergence and was trapped in the exuvia, and a small spider has arrived and is sitting on the exuvia. I do not know which kind of spider it is, and I'm not sure it is related to your observations in any way. The spider probably was there to feed on the damselfly. I've got a couple of pictures of the incident here:
http://www.photomacrography2.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2392
The damselfly was about 40 centimeters above the water and 1,5 meter from the "shore".
Cheers
Erland Nielsen
Denmark
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Ylightfoot at aol.com 
  To: odonata-l at listhost.ups.edu 
  Sent: Wednesday, June 27, 2007 6:38 PM
  Subject: [Odonata-l] Jumping spiders using exuviae for "homes"


  Hello folks:

  While collecting libellulid exuviae left in abundance in sedges, grasses, etc., along a marshy backwater of the American River near my home in the past few weeks, I have encountered two instances of a salticid using a cast skin as a roost/nest.  In the past I have occasionally found small spiderlings crawling around in/on exuviae, but the current case appears to be of a particular salticid species finding exuviae to its liking as residential dwellings.  I believe the species in question is Sassacus (=Metaphidippus) vitis, though I have yet to get this confirmed by a salticid expert (I have one live specimen, along with his exuvial abode, in a vial at present).  This same species appears to be a common inhabitant of marshy plants (e.g., yellow iris (Iris pseudacorus), sedges, etc.) bordering the riverine lagoons hereabouts.

  I'm curious to know if anyone has any additional data on this particular association or the association of any other salticid species with exuviae.

  Cheers,

  Tim Manolis
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