One of the items that I would like to research is the funnel shaped web (of which I found out belongs to a funnel weaver spider) and why there are termites going in and out of the spider’s tunnel. While I was not able to find any definitive answers, I did find out that funnel weaver spiders do like to live inside decaying wood. This is interesting because this tunnel is on the same tree that I found Red Reishi and/or Red Belted Conk fungi (two types of wood decay fungi). Termites also are attracted to decaying wood as a food source and habitat. Another factor is that the funnel weaver spiders’ main diet is insects. Thus, my hypothesis based on the information I have researched is that the funnel weaver spider has decided to make this termite den into its own home, and that the spider is also preying on the termites as part of its diet. Why the termites keep coming back is another question, and this is likely due to the fact that they are drawn to follow the pheromone left by other termites which leads it back to the spider tunnel, however I am also somewhat unsure if this is the right hypothesis for this second question.
2 Jul