Phrynarachne ceylonica explained

Phrynarachne ceylonica, the bird dung spider, is a species of spiders of the family Thomisidae. It is found in China, Japan, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, and India.[1] The species is known to discharge a foul smell which help it attract prey and deter predators.[2] It both smells like and resembles bird feces, hence the name 'bird dung spider'. The bird dung spider resembles bird feces only when it curls up in response to a predatory threat. It is characteristically known for its dual-purposed ability to mimic the smell and appearance of bird feces to both lure prey and protect against predators.[3] This species of crab spider has a flat, black-brown abdomen with bright yellow legs.[4] The width of the female abdomen is approximately 9.3 mm and the length of the body is approximately 14.5 mm.[4]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Phrynarachne ceylonica (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1884) . World Spider Catalog . 23 May 2016.
  2. Web site: Zoologger: A spider that looks and smells like bird droppings . New Scientist . 2 September 2015 . 23 May 2016 . Agata, Blaszczak-Boxe.
  3. Yu . Long . Xu . Xin . Zhang . Zengtao . Painting . Christina J . Yang . Xiaodong . Li . Daiqin . Masquerading predators deceive prey by aggressively mimicking bird droppings in a crab spider . Current Zoology . 2021 . 68 . 3 . 325–334 . 10.1093/cz/zoab060. 35592341 . 9113284 .
  4. Notes on the presences of Phrynarachne ceylonica (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1884) from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands . Minakshi Dash . C. Sivaperuman . World News of Natural Sciences . 2021 . 35 . 48–55. 25 October 2021.

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