New Types of Behavioral Manipulation of Host Spiders by a Parasitoid Wasp

Figure 2

Cocoon web of A. nr. studiosus (a) in which the wasp larva holds onto the densely-meshed central area just after having discarded the corpse of the spider. Lateral (b) and dorsal (c) views of wasp cocoons in cocoon webs of A. octavius, showing the radial pattern of lines around the upper end of the cocoon (c), and that the lines intersecting the cocoon (indicated by small “pimples”) are in the upper portion of the cocoon, with an open space below in which the cocoon hangs free (bar in (b)). The cocoon web spun from scratch in captivity (d) incorporated flat leaves (covered with white dust in the photo) as parts of the sheet.