Journal of Threatened
Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 July 2026 | 18(7): 29367–29369
ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.10162.18.7.29367-29369
#10162 | Received 15 September 2025 | Final received 08 July 2026|
Finally accepted 14 July 2026
Predation record of the hornet Vespa
basalis Smith, 1852 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) by
the orb-weaver spider Nephila pilipes (Fabricius, 1793) (Araneae: Araneidae)
1,2 Wildlife Institute of India, Chandrabani, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248001, India.
1 shantamojha83192@gmail.com (corresponding
author), 2 gautamwildlife@gmail.com
Editor: John T.D. Caleb, Saveetha
University, Chennai, India. Date of publication: 26 July
2026 (online & print)
Citation: Ojha,
S. & Gautam (2026). Predation record of the hornet Vespa
basalis Smith, 1852 (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) by
the orb-weaver spider Nephila pilipes (Fabricius, 1793) (Araneae: Araneidae). Journal of Threatened Taxa 18(7): 29367–29369. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.10162.18.7.29367-29369
Copyright: © Ojha & Gautam 2026. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and
distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the
author(s) and the source of publication.
Funding: Self-funded.
Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
Acknowledgements: The authors thank the director and staff of Dehradun Zoological Park for permitting observations within the zoo premises and for providing the opportunity to document this natural history observation under undisturbed conditions.
Interactions between spiders and
wasps represent a classic predator-prey arms race. Numerous hymenopteran
lineages are associated with spiders through diverse ecological strategies.
While pompilids, several crabronids, and sphecids
actively hunt spiders, other families such as Ichneumonidae,
Scelionidae, Encyrtidae, Eupelmidae, Eulophidae, and Pteromalidae primarily exploit spiders or their egg sacs as
parasitoids or egg predators (Nyffeler & Birkhofer 2017). Conversely, some spiders, including
jumping spiders (Phidippus audax), tarantulas (Hysterocrates
gigas), wolf spiders (Hogna
carolinensis), and orb-weavers (Araneus trifolium, Argiope spp. and even Nephila
spp.) are known to opportunistically prey on wasps (Bristowe
1941; Tso et al. 2004; Foelix 2010; Noguchi &
Ikeda 2022). Although orb-weaving spiders (Araneidae)
occasionally prey upon hymenopterans (Tso et al. 2004), predation on large
hornets (Vespinae), among the most formidable
Hymenoptera, is exceedingly rare. Noguchi & Ikeda (2022) reported only a
few cases involving Argiope aurantia, A. amoena, A.
bruennichi, and A. florida
preying on vespine wasps. In contrast, hornets (Vespa
spp.) are efficient generalist predators, exploiting a wide range of prey,
including other wasps as well (Ojha & Negi 2025). Predation by hornets on orb-weaving
spiders, particularly by Vespa mandarinia, V.
crabro, V. simillima,
V. analis, Vespula
vulgaris, Ve. flaviceps,
Ve. consobrina,
Ve. pensylvanica,
Ve. germanica,
and others, is frequently reported (Noguchi & Ikeda 2022). Additionally, kleptoparasitic interactions have also been recorded, such
as V. crabro stealing prey from Argiope bruennichi
webs (Davis 2011).
Here, we report a rare
observation of a Giant Golden Orb Weaver Nephila
pilipes (Fabricius,
1793) female capturing and immobilizing a Black-bellied Hornet Vespa basalis
Smith, 1852, at the Dehradun Zoological Park (30.3899° N, 78.0765° E),
Uttarakhand, India, on 10 November 2024. The spider was identified as an adult
female Nephila pilipes
(yellow morph) based on its external morphology, including the elongated
opisthosoma with a broad yellow dorsal longitudinal band and the characteristic
female epigynum with paired lateral indentations and a distinct posterior
depression, following Sankaran et al. (2020). The hornet was identified as Vespa
basalis based on its predominantly dark brown to black metasoma and
diagnostic colour pattern, following Smith-Pardo et
al. (2020). At 1408 h, a V. basalis hornet was observed entangled in the
upper section of a large female N. pilipes web
struggling vigorously. The spider cautiously approached the entangled hornet
and promptly bit it with its chelicerae while skillfully avoiding the sting by
manipulating and orienting the prey with its pedipalps and forelegs (Image 1).
Following the initial bite, the spider wrapped the prey in situ before cutting
it free from the web, the spider then transported the immobilized prey to the
web hub using its chelicerae, where it was suspended within the hub silk (Image
2). The entire interaction lasted approximately 2–3 min (1408–1410 h); however,
feeding was not observed because the observation ended shortly after prey
immobilization. The observation was made within the Dehradun Zoo campus, a
semi-urban green space characterized by mixed vegetation and scattered mature
trees. The female Nephila pilipes occupied a large vertical orb web measuring
approximately 1 m in diameter, suspended between adjacent Sal trees. The spider
was estimated to be ≈50 mm in body length, while the captured Vespa basalis
measured approximately ≈22 mm. Several additional mature female N. pilipes occupying large orb webs and free-flying V.
basalis individuals were also observed in the surrounding area, which
indicates that opportunities for such interactions are present within the study
area.
Orb-web building spiders utilize
a range of tactics to capture insects that are restrained in the web, and the
choice of tactic varies among species and with prey type (Robinson & Mirick 1971). Most documented interactions between
orb-weavers and vespine wasps involve species of the
genus Argiope (Noguchi & Ikeda 2022),
whereas records involving giant Nephila
species are exceedingly scarce. This may be linked to the differences in
hunting strategies between species of both genus: unlike Argiope
spp., which typically immobilizes prey by rapidly wrapping before delivering a
bite, Nephila spp. generally bite prey first
and subsequently apply silk (Robinson & Mirick
1971). Such a strategy can be risky as it exposes the spider directly to
the prey’s defenses, particularly when the prey possesses effective defensive
structures such as a sting (Foelix 2010). However,
the apparent rarity of such interactions may also reflect limited observational
studies rather than their actual frequency in nature.
The present observation therefore
provides unique insight into the prey-handling behavior of Nephila
pilipes, documenting a large female successfully
capturing and immobilizing a large vespine
hornet. The observed sequence of prey
capture closely resembled the long bite and pull-out strategy followed by
post-immobilization wrapping (Type I) described by Robinson & Mirick (1971). This observation indicates that large female
N. pilipes are capable of subduing large vespine wasps despite their well-developed defensive
structures. To our knowledge, this represents the first documented record of an
interaction between N. pilipes and Vespa
basalis from India, contributing to our understanding of spider-wasp
interactions in the region and demonstrating that N. pilipes
webs are capable of retaining and facilitating the capture of relatively large
hymenopteran prey.
For
images - - click here for full PDF
References
Austin, A.D.
& D.T. Anderson (1978). Reproduction and development of the spider Nephila
edulis (Koch) (Araneidae: Araneae).
Australian Journal of Zoology 26(3): 501–518. https://doi.org/10.1071/ZO9780501
Bristowe, W.S. (1941). The Comity of Spiders, Vol.
2. Ray Society, London, 331 pp.
Davis, M.S.
(2011). A hornet (Vespa
crabro) steals prey from a spider (Argiope aurantia). Southeastern
Naturalist 10(1): 191–192. https://doi.org/10.1656/058.010.0119
Foelix, R. (2010). Biology of Spiders.
Oxford University Press, New York, 301 pp.
Muma, M.H.
& W.F. Jeffers (1945). Studies of the spider prey of several mud-dauber wasps. Annals of
the Entomological Society of America 38(2): 245–255. https://doi.org/10.1093/aesa/38.2.245
Noguchi, D.
& K. Ikeda (2022). Intraguild predation on hornets and yellowjackets of vespine wasps by spiders, and vice versa. Serket 18(3): 287–298. https://hdl.handle.net/10069/00041479
Nyffeler, M. & K. Birkhofer
(2017). An estimated
400–800 million tons of prey are annually killed by the global spider
community. The Science of Nature 104(3): 30. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00114-017-1440-1
Ojha, S.
& V. Negi (2025). Nest predation by Vespa tropica
(Linnaeus, 1758): observational insights into polistine
wasp defense and hornet feeding behavior. Journal of Threatened Taxa 17(3):
26731–26736. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9457.17.3.26731-26736
Robinson,
M.H. & H. Mirick (1971). The predatory behavior of the
golden-web spider Nephila clavipes (Araneae: Araneidae). Psyche: A Journal of Entomology 78(3):
123–139. https://doi.org/10.1155/1971/57182
Sankaran,
P.M., J.T. Caleb, M.M. Joseph & P.A. Sebastian (2020). On a new synonymy in the spider
genus Nephila Leach, 1815 (Araneidae,
Nephilinae) from India with supplementary notes on colour polymorphism in the genus. Zootaxa 4786(4):
592–596. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4786.4.11
Smith-Pardo,
A.H., J.M. Carpenter & L. Kimsey (2020). The diversity of hornets in the
genus Vespa (Hymenoptera: Vespidae; Vespinae), their importance and interceptions in the United
States. Insect Systematics and Diversity 4(3): 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1093/isd/ixaa006
Tso, I.M., C.W. Lin & E.C.
Yang (2004). Colourful orb-weaving spiders, Nephila pilipes, through a bee’s
eyes. Journal of Experimental Biology 207(15): 2631–2637. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.01068