3 Amazing Spiders That Pretend To Be Something Else!

Today I learned about three really weird but cool looking spiders which you would probably confuse for something else if you were ever to encounter them. Why? Well, because they don't look like spiders at all! I am really curious to know what my friend @abigail-dantes (who hates spiders) thinks of them!

So, let's meet them:

1# Ariamnes Sp.

Female Ariamnes flagellum with egg sac (credit)

Ariamnes is a large genus of spiders in the family Theridiidae that contains over 30 described species. Many of the species in the genus, like the Ariamnes flagellum spider depicted above, have an unusually elongated abdomen, making them resemble a twig.

As you might have guessed, their twig-like appearance allows them to masterfully blend with the environment. All they have to do is stretch their body and pretend to be just another twig in the forest! Being tiny also helps, as the biggest species doesn't get to be more bigger than 2.2 cm.

Now let's see some videos of them before moving to the next critter:

2# Myrmarachne plataleoides

Female M. plataleoides (credit)

The second weird spider is Myrmaplata plataleoides, commonly known as the Kerengga ant-like jumper. M. plataleoides is a jumping spider that as you can see mimics ants, specifically the Kerengga, or weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina). This spider can be found in India, Sri Lanka, China and many parts of Southeast Asia.

Male M. plataleoides (credit)

While the body of all spiders is made of two segments, the body of M. plataleoides appears to have three much like an ant, thanks to constrictions on the cephalothorax and abdomen giving them an ant-like appearance. As for the large compound eyes, they are actually two black patches on the head. As for males, when their elongated chelicerae (jaws) are closed they give the appearance of a weaver ant carrying a minor worker. These ants..erm sorry spiders even walk like weavers ant and wave their front legs in the air like antennae!

As to why they look like ants the reason is simple. By mimicking them they are able to stay near them, gaining protections from predators.

As a sidenote, this is not the only spider species that mimics ants, only an example. In total, there are more than 300 spider species that look like ants!

Here's a cool video by NatGeo before moving to the last critter:

3# Paraplectana sp.

And the last spider for today is this little ladybird-like cutie:

(credit)

Paraplectana is a genus of spiders in the family Araneidae, found in East Asia, South East and in the Afro-tropical ecozone. Many species look like ladybirds, for example Paraplectana tsushimensis which is commonly known as the ladybird mimic spider.

But why do they look like like ladybugs? A little known fact about ladybugs is that they taste really bad to predators and they are even slightly toxic, for example birds often get sick after eating one. And this is also why they have bright colors, to warn predators (aposematism) that they will regret it if they eat them! As for paraplectana spiders, they mimic ladybirds to pretend they are..ladybirds and hence pretend they are toxic. So they mimic another species to fake that species' aposematism, making them an example of Batesian mimicry. It's really crazy the shit nature comes up with, don't you agree?

(credit)