Huntsville gazette., 1889-01-19
THE TEXAN TARANTULA
An Object of Terror to All Save Its Dead
ly Enemy, the Wasp.


ly Enemy, the Wasp.
Apropos to a brief reference to the
insect reported to be the deadly enemy
OF the huge spider called the tarantula,
DR.. Horn, Philadelphia distinguished
entomologist, sends us the following:
.'In the not too fertile parts OF the
region from Texas to California lives a
large spider known to the inhabitants
as the tarantula and to naturalists as
mygale hentzili. Its body is two inches
or more in length, clothed with rusty
brown hair, the legs long, and when
extended covering an oval of four or
five inches. As may be imagined, the
mygale is not a handsome insect, and,
= while it is looked upon with terror by
most people, no one cares to handle 1t
unless quite certain it is dead.
.H'ln place of the web which usually
forms the house of spiders the mygale
excavates a burrow in the loose soil,
from which it wanders in search OF its
prey, consisting principally OF mem
bers of the grasshopper family or
cicades.. The jaws are large and pow
erfnl, armed with long, stout fangs.
with which they can pierce and kill
their prey. One full meal will at
times supply their needs for several
weeks. In fact, during the moulting
period they remain torpid and take no
food.
.During its growth the mygale makes
,l1at Of
it sheds its outer coat when that has
become uncomfortably close-ftting. in
the same manner as the common crab
of our coast. At these times members
lost from the body by accidents are
partially replaced; if a leg is lost the
first moult produces a perfectly formed
but short leg, subsequent moults in
creasing the size OF the leg.
while the mygale is dread to most
forms of insect life, there is one of
which it in turn stands in mortal ter
ror. Abundant in-the same regions is
as1arge wasp with bluish-green body
and golden-red wings. The body is
about two inches long. the spread OF
wings nearly an inch greater. These
wasps (pepsis formosa fly uneasily
about in search of food for themselves
until they discover tarantula,' when
a more definite course of action is as
sumed. The fight of the wasp is now
in circles around its prey, gradually
approaching it, the mygale, meanwhile
in terror, showing fight, standing semi
erect on the two hinder pair of legs. A
favorable opportunity presenting, the
wasp stings the spider and renews the
circle flight, repeating the sting until
the spider becomes completely para
lyzed. When the wasp is assured Of the
helplessness of the spider it seizes him
and drags him to previously prepared
nest. The eggs Of the wasp are then
deposited and the spider covered up.
The eggs soon hatch, the spider is
gradually eaten, and new wasp APP
pears to repeat the actions of its
parent
''By the sting of the wasp the spider
is not killed, simply paralyZed. so that
during the time it is being fed upon it
retains vitality. furnishing living food
to the newly-hatched larvae, which, by
a curious instinct, feed first on those
parts of the spider not essential to the
maintaining of the little vitality re-
naming.
"Our common mud-wasp, chlay bion,
has similar habits Its nests, made of
elastic mud, are familiar to most peo-
pie, as they are found abundantly in
sheltered places about barns and other
outhouses. These. when opened, will
be found filled with spiders, in the help
less condition already mentioned,
among them larvae and some partly
eaten spiders. - Philadelphia Ledger.