Out of all pop-culture cryptids that lurk in the dark, vampires have the most iconic fangs by far. One can only assume they’d have a soft spot not just for bats, but also for spiders with fangs that look straight out of a horror movie. Vampires and spiders can effortlessly send chills down spines, but what about a mash-up of the two?
Such a sinister combo does exist in real life, known as the vampire spider (Evarcha culicivora). The good news is, while this arachnid has a thirst for blood that rivals even Dracula’s, it isn’t out to sink its fangs into human necks. Nor does it look nearly as frightening as its name would suggest, with a body as big as a grain of rice and beady eyes that are strangely cute.
Find out where vampire spiders get their daily dose of blood and how it nourishes them in more ways than one.
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A Vampire Spider’s Favorite Meal
The vampire spider is a species of jumping spider found in regions around Lake Victoria in Kenya and Uganda. As their name would imply, they’re fond of human and animal blood. But as luck would have it, their fangs are so small that they can’t pierce skin.
However, the spiders have a backup plan to get their favorite food; they catch mosquitoes of the Anopheles genus that are already engorged on blood, making them “mosquito specialists.” These spiders will specifically target blood-carrying female mosquitoes, since male mosquitoes cannot feed on blood.
They aren’t just mosquito specialists, either. They could also be considered “plant specialists” as well, according to a 2017 study in the journal Behavioural Processes. They visit certain plants in response to odorous compounds like humulene and caryophyllene, although their goals differ depending on age; juvenile spiders choose the plants to acquire nectar as a food source, whereas adults choose them as mating sites.
Sniffing Out Human Odors
Vampire spiders mainly use two strategies to hunt for mosquitoes: sight and sense of smell. These traits help them distinguish mosquitoes from nonbiting midges (or “lake flies”) that live in the same habitat, but don’t carry the same blood that the spiders are interested in.
Previous research has shown that the spiders are also drawn to human odors, especially ones that aren’t too appealing, like the smell of sweaty socks. As gross as it sounds, this odor guides them to places where humans — and in turn, mosquitoes — are present.
There are a few other ways that vampire spiders can find mosquitoes to get their fill of blood. They rely on their sight to choose their targets and have been shown to identify female mosquitoes based on their antennae.
An Obsession with Blood
Despite being experienced hunters, the spiders’ strategies aren’t always perfect. One shortcoming is that, as lovers of blood, they’re a bit too obsessed with the color red.
A 2022 study published in Animal Behavior observed this shortcoming with an experiment that gave vampire spiders the options to feed on blood-carrying mosquitoes, mosquitoes that were fed a blend of red food dye to make them appear blood-fed, and gray-dyed mosquitoes that mimic the appearance of those that never fed on blood.
Unsurprisingly, the spiders delighted in the blood-carrying mosquitoes. This preference was strongest within six hours of the mosquitoes feeding on blood, while their bodies were red. At 12 hours, when the red color started to drain from the mosquitoes, the spiders seemed to lose interest.
The spiders also chose the red-dyed mosquitoes over the gray-dyed mosquitoes, proving that it’s the redness of blood that largely attracts them.
Although vampire spiders’ tiny stature and attraction to smelly socks do not make them as debonair as vampires, their enthusiasm for blood may just be unmatched.
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