Resumen

Phoneutria genus is among of the most dangerous spider in the world and its distribution from the Costa Rican jungle to northern Argentina, where those responsible for human accidents are its aggressive behavior and poison toxicity. Different studies have analyzed poison toxins from these areas. In spiders, predator behavior is closely linked to toxicity, taking into account that poison along with silk are mainly the mechanisms used to capture prey. Recently it was shown that the presence of certain specific toxins in some spiders of the genus Latrodectus obey to the capture of prey as vertebrates. However, few works have addressed spider toxicity in diet function, ignoring the action of venom in natural prey. The present work aimed to analyze the predatory behavior of Phoneutria boliviensis. The great distribution of the genus in Colombia. Considering that, the toxicity can vary according to sex. 20 males and 20 females will be used to which different types of prey (invertebrates / vertebrates) will be supplied randomly. Acceptance prey, immobilization times and capture behavior between the sexes and the level of the different dams were compared. We found that P. boliviensis is a generalist spider that consumes both invertebrates and vertebrates in laboratory conditions. In addition, their predatory behavior seems not to be stereotyped and different between sexes.