>I was looking down the throat of an S. flava and noticed a spider had
>set up a web. How common is it and are there any known relationships.
I am not sure if there are any co- evolutionary associations between
a particular species of spider and Sarracenias but small spiders of
various species (obviously not normally associated with such exotics in
Australia) spin tiny webs across the entrance of my plants pitchers.
I have not observed them catch anything so I am not sure if it is
advantageous for them to live in this position. I think in most cases
they would be opportunists looking for safe spot to spin a web but
specialist species may exist in the USA. You never know with invertebrates
as there are more undiscovered species than in most other groups of
organisms and their ecology has barely been touched on.
Martin Henery
Macquarie University
Sydney, Australia.