Jail Stripe Spiders Make a Break For it Using Bromeliads

 

Habitat: South America; Paraguay, Brazil.
Status: Not Evaluated

Sporting the always fashionable jail bird look is this neotropical orbweaver species Alpaida quadrilorata. There’s not much in the way of info on this species (that I can tell) except that it’s found on certain species of plants. Bromeliads, in particular, seem to house these convicted creatures.

When disturbed, they’ve been known to dive straight into the bromeliad’s collected pool of water. It’s posited that they hang out around these tropical plants for a source of food, feasting on larvae that brood in the plant’s water, and as a defensive strategy. I think of them as tiny little jail stripe spiders that “escape from prison” by jumping into the nearest reservoir. Now that’s an escape strategy, alright!