Nature · 2
After a tarantula hawk wasp stings and paralyzes a tarantula, what happens to the spider before it eventually dies?
Answer
It remains alive as a living food source while a wasp larva slowly consumes it
The wasp's venom paralyzes rather than kills the tarantula, and the wasp lays an egg on it so the hatched larva can feed on the still-living spider for an extended period.
💡 Did you know?
Tarantulas and wasps enter deadly combat, but some wasps lay eggs on paralyzed tarantulas anyway—the spider becomes a living incubator for wasp larvae.
Other options people guess
- It dies instantly from the sting's venom
- It recovers full mobility within a few hours
- It is immediately eaten by the adult wasp
Topics
- insects
- symbiosis
- parasitism
- wasps
- spiders
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