Noooooo!

This jagged ambush bug became entangled in the spider's trap but escaped only to become even more entangled. The wolf spider darted out of its hiding place and bit the bug. I thought that was the end of the ambush bug but it kept struggling as the spider circled it several times, getting a bite in now and then. The wolf spider would circle and then hover over the ambush bug. Now and then it would spring forward to bite. While all this was going on I noticed another wolf spider in its lair about eight inches away.

The struggle went on and on. I went for a walk and came back a half-hour later. Now the spider was beneath the ambush bug and biting at the back of its head. The other spider had managed to trap its own ambush bug. Both ambush bugs were still alive. I wonder if wolf spiders are unable to penetrate any vital area on these bugs. Jagged ambush bugs can kill bees much larger than itself but it did not appear to have a defense against the fast-moving wolf spider.

There is always something interesting (or violent or gross depending on your viewpoint) happening in my garden. Sometimes it seems odd that gardens are considered such restful places.