Tiny Body, Big Bite
An Evaluation Of The Life Of A Brown Recluse
The World In the View Of My 6 Eyes
Being an arthropod and part of the Loxosceles Reclusa family, my habitat of choice is somewhere dark, cool, and relatively dry... kinda like your basement... or your cabinets,.. or your shoe... or in your bed! However, I beg you not to fret, for I, like most spiders, am not aggressive. Don't get me wrong, if you freak out and try to turn my exoskeleton into a pancake, of course i'm going to defend myself. But come on, my venom is made for the liquidation of insect intestines, why would i waste any on a human? it's not free you know!
Speaking Of the Liquefaction of Intestines...
Let's talk about dinner! You might notice that my webs aren't as beautifully crafted as some of my cousins, and that's because i am a hunter, so i go find my food, rather than waiting for it to find me (or my web MWAHAHAHAHHA). Although i have no trouble killing my own food, If i happen to stumble upon something already deceased, i will indulge myself. Now you may be wondering, "how does a spider even eat?", well let me just teeeeellll you!
So how my specific venom works is it paralyzes the target, and kills their skin cells so i can easily slurp up the yummy deliciousness left over! The primary nutrients i get from these super soups is carbohydrates (from the exoskeleton), and protein (from the newly smoothie-fied insides). These yummy nutrients provide fuel for the process that all of us animals partake in, respiration!
Friends, Family, And Foes
Although it is true that i do not participate in any mutualistic, parasitic, or commensalistic relations, i am still very important to my community! Being not at the top nor bottom of the food chain, i play a key role on regulation. As i've said before, i eat all of the annoying, seemingly overpopulated bugs that no one want to deal with (your welcome). So, if i were to suddenly disappear, there would be a great abundance of these pests roaming around every square inch of you beautiful little house and garden. However, with every star, there shall be haters. My biggest worries would be blue jays, crickets, praying mantis, and um HUMANS.