Popular Science featured UBC zoology research that found spider colonies can get so big that they can no longer sustain themselves.
Past studies have found that as colony size increases, spiders are more likely to catch more prey, up until a certain point. Then they would catch larger and larger prey, but less prey overall. The UBC researchers studied a certain species of spiders and found that their sharing of food led to less food for everyone, poorer health and eventually a die-off.
“Once I saw a massive nest on the side of the road in Ecuador, about five meters tall and four meters across. I went back a few weeks later and it was completely gone,” said lead author and zoology PhD candidate Ruth Sharpe.
A similar story appeared in Science Daily.
