Hobbies And Interests
Appearance
Ogre-faced spiders, sometimes referred to as stick spiders, have eight eyes, two of which are much larger than the rest. Their large eyes make them sensitive to sunlight, so they are most active at night. They have long legs and a long, stick-like body. Their bodies are brown and they appear to only have four legs because of the way they hold them. Females are about an inch long, while males are about half an inch long.
Habitat
Ogre-faced spiders live in Africa, Asia, Australia and North and South America. These spiders live in bushes, tall grass and shrubs and can also be found in cities in grass patches or flower gardens. They tend to hide under sticks, twigs and other vegetation during the day to avoid sunlight and predators.
Diet
Ogre-faced spiders prey on flies, beetles, butterflies and other insects. They will also feed on other spiders if needed. These spiders hunt at night using their two larger eyes to locate prey. They catch their prey by hanging near the ground and spinning a wooly web that they hold between their front legs. As prey approaches, the spider throws the web like a net over it and it gets entangled in the strands. Once the prey is wrapped up in the web, the spider bites it to paralyze it. Each time the spider hunts for prey, it must produce a new web. If the spider spins a net at night but does not catch any prey, it eats the web the following morning.
Reproduction
Ogre-faced spiders mate in the summer. Female spiders lay as many as 400 eggs divided among two to four egg sacs. The yellowish-brown egg sacs with black spots are attached to plants or blades of grass. The females die before the eggs hatch. When the spiderlings hatch, they emerge from the egg sac through a hole at the top. The lifespan of the ogre-faced spider is approximately one year.