### id260586564 Portia spiders make contextual decisions > For *Portia*, finding the right strategy is especially important when pursuing spiders that also eat jumping spiders. To attack a web-building spider, for example, *Portia* deceives the spider into moving closer by plucking some of the silk strands of its web. If the target spider is relatively small, *Portia* plucks the web to mimic a trapped insect, prompting the spider to rush over thinking it’s about to have a meal — only to become one instead. But if the resident spider is bigger and potentially more dangerous, *Portia* may instead create a gentle disturbance similar to a fruit fly contacting a single strand at the edge of the web that the spider will slowly wander over to inspect. As soon as the target is close enough, *Portia* pounces and strikes with venomous fangs - [View Highlight](https://read.readwise.io/read/01fqd2zgd158xdvtf073027hmd) - [[Spiders are Much Smarter than You Think by Betsy Mason#id260586564 Portia spiders make contextual decisions|View in Vault]]