Tarantulas may seem like intimidating spiders, but they still have their own predators to watch out for. As apex predators that eat small rodents, lizards, frogs, and insects, tarantulas play an important role in controlling pest populations and are an integral part of many ecosystems. However, tarantulas have to watch their own backs as they are prey for a diverse array of animals.
Birds Are the Ultimate Aerial Hunters
As skillful aerial hunters, birds eat their fair share of tarantulas. Hawks, owls, and roadrunners spot tarantulas moving about on the ground, swooping down to snatch them up with razor-sharp talons. Vultures use their keen sight to locate dead and dying tarantulas that make easy scavenged meals. Crafty crows utilize tools like sticks and rocks to flip tarantulas over before consuming their exposed undersides.
But secretive owls enjoy feasting on tarantulas the most. Under the cloak of night, stealthy barn owls glide just above the landscape, employing exceptional hearing to pinpoint where tarantulas crawl about. Once detected, they dive in to grab tarantulas with fierce talons. The giant burrowing owl specializes further – inhabiting abandoned tarantula burrows as nests! Here, they catch tarantulas as they emerge at night near home entrances.
While able fliers, tarantulas prove awkward and slow on the ground. These giant spiders rely on camouflage and burrows to hide from bird attacks. But molting and male roaming make tarantulas temporarily vulnerable as hungry birds constantly watch from above
Snakes Love to Feast on Juicy Tarantulas
Snakes rank among the top predators of tarantulas. Excellent climbers and adept at entering burrows, snakes hunt tarantulas in their underground lairs. Rat snakes, kingsnakes, racers, and whipsnakes all feed on big spiders, including tarantulas. Their lightning-quick strikes grab hold before tarantulas detect danger.
Specialist snake species like the tarantula hawk wasp snake even prey predominantly on tarantulas. Growing over 6 feet long these snakes infiltrate tarantula burrows in search of the large spiders. Once found they bite down with rear-facing fangs to subdue dangerous prey before constriction and consumption.
Chemical cues alert snakes to signs indicating tarantulas in the vicinity. Slithering into burrows, snakes use heat-sensitive pits lining their mouths to target tarantulas in the darkness. Ambush comes swiftly once pinpointing their hairy victims. For tarantulas, danger lurks both outside and inside their homes.
Lizards Love Crunchy Tarantulas for Snacks
Many large lizard species, including monitors, tegus, and Gila monsters, feed on tarantulas. Their scales offer protection from spider fangs and urticating hairs, allowing them to overpower and consume spider prey. Raptorial lizards like the Gila monster latch on with vice-like jaws, injecting immobilizing venom through chewing as tarantulas struggle.
But the ultimate tarantula-eating lizard roams southwest America. The aptly named tarantula hawk wields specialized spider deterrent adaptations allowing it to feast on sizable tarantulas. Thick skin a protective plastron to block stings, and resistance to tarantula venom give them a great advantage. Speed, agility, and lightning ambush make them formidable adversaries.
Stealthy stalking lets tarantula hawks sneak up and hop onto tarantulas’ backs before they can react. Sharp claws and beaks make short work of the giant spiders. Specialized appetite and physical traits equip the tarantula hawk for this risky lifestyle.
Mammals Prey on Tarantulas When Foraging
Hooved mammals surprisingly prey on tarantulas encountered while foraging. Wild pigs root through ground soil and vegetation in search of insects, grubs, lizards, and plant bulbs. If coming across a tarantula den, pigs expose and consume spiders, eggs, or young residing within. Goats and sheep also eat spiders and have been observed preying on wandering male tarantulas.
But the mammal most feared by tarantulas is the grasshopper mouse. Unlike other small mice, grasshopper mice hunt prey rather than eat seeds and plants. Nocturnal and aggressive, they stalk insects, scorpions, and even small snakes. Coming across a tarantula, grasshopper mice overwhelm them with coordinated fierce attacks using sharp teeth and claws. Their fierce dispositions give them an advantage against much larger spider prey.
Other small mammal predators like shrews, moles, and rats also kill and eat tarantulas when discovering them in shared habitats. Coatis exhibit group mobbing behaviors to take down sizable spiders and insects through coordinated harassment. For solitary tarantulas, swarming mammals bring dangerous outcomes.
Wasps Sting and Paralyze Giant Tarantulas
Solitary wasps represent another formidable tarantula predator. Female tarantula hawks, wheel spiders, and dirt daubers all specialize in paralyzing and cocooning spider prey. The largest spider wasp, Pepsis grossa, targets tarantulas in Mexico and South America. Their painful sting temporarily paralyzes tarantulas before being dragged by wasps back to burrows.
Here the living yet immobile spider hosts tarantula hawk eggs and larvae that slowly consume non-vital organs when hatching. One wasp offspring develops per spider, emerging from the empty tarantula exoskeleton once mature. This gruesome lifecycle depends upon successfully subduing dangerous tarantula prey.
Smaller dirt daubers employ similar strategies, cementing paralyzed tarantulas into ground nest cells. Their numerous offspring develop by extracting fluids from tarantulas sealed within the burrow walls. Diverse solitary wasps all wield venom, granting them the capacity to exploit formidable spiders, including notoriously aggressive tarantulas, as living nurseries for their young.
Giant Centipedes Overwhelm Hairy Tarantulas
As venomous predators themselves, tarantulas occasionally fall victim to attacks by giant centipedes. These multi-legged arthropods deliver immobilizing and liquefying bites rapid-fire to subdue large spider prey. Their elongated bodies allow tackling of prey much larger than themselves – including bulky tarantulas.
Desert variants like the giant Sonoran centipede hunt in territories overlapping those frequented by tarantulas. Nearly a foot long, these centipedes hesitate at nothing once in attack mode. Their venom quickly overpowers tarantulas while joined sets of mouthparts tear through flesh rapidly. Even the tarantula’s sizable fangs cannot penetrate the hardened centipede shell in defense.
Once latched onto legs or body, agile centipedes circle swiftly out, maneuvering spider prey attempts to bite back. Giant tropical centipedes also prey on large spiders. Lightning-fast strikes pin down legs as venom penetrates to destroy tissue and nerves. Overwhelmed by centipedes’ forward-mounted venom claws, tarantulas make it difficult for prey to deter these persistent predators.
Tarantulas may seem like intimidating spiders, but they still have their own predators to watch out for. Birds expertly snatch them from above on remote landscapes. Snakes infiltrate the depths of tarantula burrows, attacking by surprise underground.
Monitors and Gila monsters use protected bodies paired with strength, speed, and venom to overwhelm tarantulas that cross paths. Tiny grasshopper mice mob tarantulas are utterly fearless of being bitten. Solitary wasps turn the table, stinging tarantulas to paralysis in order to implant offspring that feed within their bodies.
Giant centipedes wield venom claws, delivering rapid, liquefying bites that even giant spiders struggle to defend against. Nowhere remains truly safe for tarantulas facing such diverse, lethal predators. Only by breeding prolifically do tarantulas endure constant threats long enough to pass genes onto offspring. This ensures the next generation of spiders proves to be wily, defensive, and well-hidden enough to repeat the cycle of life in hostile environments.
Explore the National Park Service
In the fall, these beautiful, creepy crawlers migrate to find a mate.
NPS / Brad Sutton
Autumn provides a brief glimpse into the workings of nature in the desert. At no other time is the intimate connection between life and death represented so clearly.
One of the species that best embodies this relationship between life and death is the desert tarantula, Aphonopelma iodium. Tarantulas, the largest spiders in North America, are typically two to three inches long and are covered with thousands of fine hairs ranging in color from tan to dark brown. Besides its eight legs, the basic sections of a tarantulas body are its cephalothorax (a fused head and thorax, or chest) and its abdomen.
Many tarantulas have a bald spot on the abdomen as a result of a unique defensive behavior. When cornered by a predator, the tarantula will rub its hind legs over its abdomen, brushing hairs into its enemys eyes. Tarantulas have many natural predators including larger lizards, snakes, and birds. However, the most ferocious is the tarantula hawk, a large, metallic blue and orange wasp. A single tarantula hawk can sting and paralyze a tarantula, drag the spider back to a prepared burrow, and lay eggs upon the still-living creatures abdomen. The wasp then seals its paralyzed prey inside the burrow. Upon hatching, the wasp larvae will eat the tarantula alive. Although this outcome may seem grisly from our human perspective, nature knows only one standard: survival.
When a male tarantula reaches sexual maturity, between eight and ten years of age, he begins a journey that will both aid the survival of his species and cost him his life. Should you observe a desert tarantula in Joshua Tree National Park this autumn, it is likely to be a male in search of a mate. The male follows the scent of a female tarantula to the receptive females burrow, which she has typically excavated in dry, sandy soil and lined with silk webbing. Tarantulas are solitary animals; there is only one spider in this burrow.
To alert the female of his presence, the male taps one of his legs against the ground until the female emerges. The male must then participate in a dangerous mating dance, wherein he fends off the female, who wishes to devour him, by using hooks on his front legs. His death will give the female a needed boost of nutrition, as she must now produce 500 to 1,000 eggs and a silk cocoon where the eggs will be protected. Even if the male escapes being eaten by the female, he will still die within a few months. Females, on the other hand, often produce eggs for 25 years or more.
When not involved in the ritual of reproduction, tarantulas typically do not eat each other. Insects like beetles and grasshoppers make up a good portion of the tarantula diet, and tarantulas in the desert may also devour small lizards, mice, and even scorpions. Although tarantulas have the ability to spin silk, they chase down their prey rather than snaring it in webs. Their eight closely set eyes are not useful in hunting. Instead, thousands of sensitive hairs on the spiders body allow it to detect subtle movements in its immediate environment and “home in” on a victim. The tarantula strikes with its fangs, injecting venom. There is a struggle while the venom takes effect, and the tarantula must grasp its prey with the palps, two arm-like appendages between the mouth and legs. If successful, the tarantula wads up its semi-paralyzed victim, secretes digestive juices onto it, and sucks up the liquefied prey. One creatures death leads to anothers survival; the pattern of life in the desert continues.
If you encounter a tarantula, take time to observe its body, its behavior, and its connection to the fabric of desert life, but please do not disturb this delicate connection. Wildlife should never be touched, chased, or fed, and the tarantula is no exception. Contrary to appearance and reputation, the tarantula is a timid creature and will not bite human beings unless seriously provoked. Like all animals in Joshua Tree National Park, the desert tarantula deserves our respect, not just for surviving, but for thriving in a place where the boundary between life and death is always shifting.
by Park Ranger Mike Cipra
EATING A GOLIATH TARANTULA!
FAQ
What animal eats a tarantula?
Tarantulas have many natural predators including larger lizards, snakes, and birds. However, the most ferocious is the tarantula hawk, a large, metallic blue and orange wasp.
What is a tarantula’s worst enemy?
A tarantula hawk is a spider wasp (Pompilidae) that preys on tarantulas. Tarantula hawks belong to any of the many species in the genera Pepsis and Hemipepsis.
Do coyotes eat tarantulas?
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Predators of Tarantulas:Coyotes are among the natural predators of tarantulas, along with other animals like snakes, birds (including spider-eating birds), and large lizards.
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While coyotes are a predator, the most notable predator of tarantulas are tarantula hawks, a type of wasp that paralyzes tarantulas and lays its eggs on them.
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Tarantula Diet:Tarantulas themselves are nocturnal hunters, feeding on insects, small spiders, arthropods, and sometimes small lizards.
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Coyotes are opportunistic predators:Coyotes are generally scavengers and predators of small prey but can shift to large prey occasionally.
What attacks a tarantula?
Tarantula hawks can reach up to 11 centimetres long. There are 133 known species and they all lead solitary lives. They are named after their habit of hunting tarantulas, which are often considerably larger than themselves – but these wasps do so with little risk to their own lives. ‘The wasps always win.
How do tarantulas eat?
This is why they are known as huntsman spiders. They eat using their strong and powerful fangs, which they use to hold the prey steady before they inject venom into it. The venom immobilizes its prey, and then they make a meal of it. Tarantulas are a breed of carnivorous spiders.
Do tarantulas eat at night?
As for non-mating-season times, tarantulas are night hunters. They can sometimes be seen a dusk or at night. They are not looking for people, but for insects and small animals, they can feast upon. Do tarantulas shed their skin? Why do tarantulas molt? Yes, as tarantulas grow, they shed their skin.
How do you feed a pet tarantula?
Feeding pet tarantulas requires providing them with a suitable diet of live food sources. Crickets, mealworms, king worms, and other gut-loaded insects are excellent choices. It’s essential to avoid overfeeding and promptly remove any uneaten food to prevent injuries from hungry prey insects.