Spiders and Centipedes Devour Frogs, Snakes -- and an Opossum
![](http://static1.squarespace.com/static/5df5562d4c1bf307fe3fe684/5df556ecd2850c3689fc00a1/5df55760d2850c3689fc1674/1576359776178/Fig_3A.jpg?format=original)
A tarantula preying on a Bolivian bleating frog (Hamptophryne boliviana). Photo by Emanuele Biggi, in Amphibian & Reptile Conservation.
Spidersand centipedes and water bugs, oh my! It turns out these creepy crawlies can bepredators just as fierce as lions and tigers.
A team of biologists has documented 15 predator-prey interactions where the invertebrates are hunters and the vertebrates prey. Their article includes photo and video evidence of invertebrate predators – mostly large spiders as well as some centipedes and a giant water bug – killing and eating vertebrates such as frogs, tadpoles, lizards, snakes, and even a small opossum.
Watch a video of the opossum incident, see more photos, and read my story at National Geographic: First-Ever Video Shows Tarantula Eating Opossum.