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gh411 t1_iw7zyk9 wrote

Reply to comment by penis_in_my_hand in Are there any K-Strategists insects? by [deleted]

I find it interesting that the Pepsis wasps link their success with that of tarantulas. It seems counterintuitive to need tarantulas in order to breed, but each offspring kills a tarantula. Do they have the ability to change host incubators if tarantulas were to become unavailable?

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Kevjamwal t1_iw8d3cd wrote

This is true of any specialist predator though. Basically it just can’t be TOO successful or it wipes out it’s host/prey opportunities

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NorthernerWuwu t1_iw8tgjf wrote

It's often true of more generalist predators as well, even though they are dealing with a broader spectrum of prey species. Population booms and crashes are quite normal over any reasonable timeline.

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riptaway t1_iwaia7l wrote

Well, it's self correcting. If there are plenty of tarantulas, they have plenty of opportunities to make babies. If they hunt them to scarcity, there won't be as many babies and tarantuals will again flourish. Seems pretty clear they have an equilibrium going. At least until humans destroy the habitat of either.

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immibis t1_iw8acfz wrote

Isn't this the same as any parasite species for example?

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Infernoraptor t1_iwxpsdu wrote

Not always. It depends on the mode of infection. If a parent hunts down a host for direct infection, they don't need many offspring. For other parasites, especially those that don't have a free-living adult form, they often produce huge amounts of eggs or larva. Think of parasitic worms, for example. Most of the young never find a host, so they need numbers.

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PostPostModernism t1_iw8mk8j wrote

Evolution doesn't plan through logic, just what works. And it certainly doesn't account for the interruption humans have imposed on the natural order of things (except for some modern responses we're beginning to see from anthropogenic pressures).

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gh411 t1_iw8o4sl wrote

I agree, I understand how natural succession works…and clearly it works in this case. I just find it interesting to see one species place its entire future on one other species…kind of an all the eggs in one basket approach. I suppose if tarantulas were to disappear, the wasps would also go extinct, unless some had the ability to adapt and use another host. Is there cases where we see these wasps successfully, albeit rarely, use another host for their eggs?

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Alblaka t1_iwbfyjs wrote

You're anthropomorphizing the very concept of 'a species'. There is no 'species of these wasps' entity that specifically places it's future onto any thing... it's just a load of individual wasps bumbling about doing whatever and just so happening to have genetically condensed on doing something that kind of works well enough.

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googlecansuckithard t1_iw8htu3 wrote

There are many therophosids wich are not tarantulas but are commonly misidentified as such. (Trapdoors, mose spiders, and funnel webs are examples) the ecologocal difference as might pertain to darwinistic theory is geographic distribution, their relative speed, the strength of their venom, and the nature of their exoskeleton.

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