Circle of Life

Spotted this little life-and-death drama on campus walking to my building. A Yellowjacket (“Vespula maculifrons”) and a Harvestman (English common names: “daddy-long-legs” or “daddy-longlegs” or “daddy long-legs,” “”granddaddy-long-legs,” “harvest spiders,” “shepherd spiders,” “phalangids,” “opilionids”). From my BugGuide submission, “Harvestmen are a common prey item of yellowjackets.” Indeed, there didn’t seem to be much fight left in this Harvestman, which was upside-down at one moment during my observation…

Regarding Harvestmen (order Opiliones): “Easily separated from spiders by the broad fusion of the two body segments, so that the body appears to be composed of a singular segment. Also, as they do not possess silk glands, harvestmen can't form webs” — http://bugguide.net/node/view/2405

This particular Harvestman has been placed in family Sclerosomatidae and genus Leiobunum.

ID’ed at BugGuide: http://bugguide.net/node/view/827950

One year ago (“At a great-great-great grandmother’s grave”): http://365project.org/rhoing/365/2012-08-19
Two years ago (“Reflections of greens and browns”): http://365project.org/rhoing/365/2011-08-19

[dave bennett]

cool close up

[Rick Schies]

A duel to the end

[MaryBeth Dailey]

OMG! Super capture! You have great eyes and observational skills to see this! It makes me sad. But it is the circle of life. Harvestmen eat bugs too, don't they? So ....it is silly for me to think of this "poor, gentle harvestman" being assaulted and eaten as sad. Great shot! fav