during the hottest hours of the day. During this time, they stay in the resting position with their legs retracted under the cephalothorax. In the evening the spiders leave the leafy area above the web sheet, “the retreat,” in order to renew the silk threads in the web or to position themselves to wait for prey to be captured. During cold and rainy days, the spiders are active throughout the day. Prey capture can happen during the daytime if the prey vibrates enough to attract the spider to leave the retreat to capture the prey. Female guarding behavior Eggs sacs are kept in the retreat, guarded by the female. Females guarding their egg sacs move very little and therefore no new silk threads are added to the web during this period. The only times females leave their eggs sacs are to capture prey or copulate. A female that is guarding her egg sac will attack an approaching female by touching the female with its front pair of legs, biting, or pursuing it for a distance. It is hypothesized that the aggressiveness towards other females is used as a means to protect the egg sac or brood from cannibalism. Feeding behavior Adult males, females, and juveniles participate in prey capture. Bigger females attack the prey first by biting the thorax and abdomen of the prey. The smaller females join by biting the appendages or releasing silk threads over the prey. After the prey is immobilized by the females, the males will bite the thorax and abdomen of the prey. Juveniles in their fourth instar will aid by biting the appendages of the prey. Females feed on the prey in groups, or if they prey is small, they break the prey into parts and feed individually. Dead females are eaten by the juveniles or other adult females. Colony formation Colony formation usually occurs through the construction of small solitary webs by adult or subadult females, though it may occur through colony budding. Some subadult females found new colonies following solitary dispersal, while others remain in their natal nests. It is argued that emigration is a consequence of a strong selection pressure to maximize food availability before the egg-laying season. Emigrating females are significantly larger and lay larger clutches, while smaller females do not disperse and lay significantly larger eggs. Because emigration requires high-energy expenditure, it is hypothesized that smaller females do not