Termites: Unlikely Heroes in Scientific Discovery
Originally Published 2 years ago — by The New York Times
Scientists conducted an experiment to understand how jumping spiders perceive their prey's color patterns. They attached capes to termites in different colors and presented them to the spiders. The findings revealed that while the spiders quickly spotted termites in striped capes, they rarely attacked them, providing an explanation for why many species use striking stripes to scare off predators. The research suggests that jumping spiders have an inherent ability to pinpoint striped patterns, making stripes an effective strategy to grab a predator's attention and reduce attacks.