Langlevende volwassen spinnen

Spiders living at ground level had a longer adult lifespan than species inhabiting the vegetation. This was especially significant in the two largest families investigated (Theridiidae and Linyphiidae). Indoor spiders also lived longer as adults than outdoor species in the laboratory and the difference was significant in Theridiids. We hypothesize that long adult lifespan is an adaptation to dry calory-poor environments resembling indoor conditions, while the long lifespan of the (mainly small) ground litter spiders, in contrast to vegetation inhabiting species, is an adaptation to a restricted food supply that is, however, sufficient for surviving and reproducing during wintertime in the Netherlands. The indoor theridiid species Steatoda grossa had the longest adult lifespan (more than four years) and the rare ground-litter linyphiid Lessertia dentichelis likewise reached more than four years.