Page 54 - The Miracle in the Spider

Jumping spiders' imitations of ants are so perfect that
other jumping spiders mistake them for real ants and try to
hunt them.

spider to look like an ant, it is not enough for it to
stick its legs up in the air. It also has to copy the
ants' walk and body position. To do this it has to be
an expert observer and also be expert at portraying
what it sees, like an actor playing a role.
As we have seen, the spider uses methods of
imitation, which require thinking, putting its
thoughts into action, and realising the necessary
physical transformations as it does so. No thinking,
intelligent person will find it hard to see that the
spider cannot do all this. For one thing, the spider's
brain is not capable of that kind of thinking. So,

what is the source of the spider's abilities? But
before coming to any conclusion, it will be useful to
examine some other qualities necessary for the
disguise to be complete.
The spider's disguise consists of more than
just the above. In order to look like an ant it needs
to hide its eyes, which are not single large points, The spiders use their
colours to camouflage
like the ants' are. But a characteristic of the spider
themselves. This jumping
has resolved this problem. Two dark spots on the spider was created with the
spider's sides mimic the weaver ant's large same colours and patterns
as the ground. It waits until
compound eyes. 15
a moth, which cannot see it
Let us stop and think. The spider cannot know because of its colour,
about the two spots on either side of its head. It is comes by, and then jumps
on it.