Spider diets

I recently visited the Queensland Museum's travelling exhibition, Spiders, which will be open until 4 May 2020.  I enjoyed seeing the spiders, but I also enjoyed seeing how science is communicated.  This dinner plate in particular I thought was fascinating.

The plate is divided into thirds, each third representing the diet of a spider with a different hunting strategy.

Top: Funnel Web Spider, Hadronyche sp., catches prey that lands on the ground.

Bottom Left: Huntsman Spider, Isopeda sp., catches prey that lands on or climbs up tree trunks, rock and walls.

Bottom Right: Golden Orb-weaving Spider, Nephila plumipes, catches flying prey.

As I thought about teaching food webs I thought that a simple graphic organiser like this could allow students to fine tune their understanding of a spider's place in the food web, with very clear linkage of diet to behaviour and micro-habitat. I like the exhibits method of using specimens, but this could be equally well achieved as a drawing or collage exercise.