The black widow: Is she really a widow?
Abstract
The black widow spider owes its name to the fact that the females of some species of Latrodectus have been seen to prey on the male before, during or after copulation; however, it is not always the case. This paper presents information compiled from previous research showing that in the genus Latrodectus, the frequency with which females cannibalize males varies between species and between individuals of a species, and depends on the ecological context.
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References
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