Female Chinese grasshoppers raise their young in nests and feed them milk that is more nutritious than cow’s milk.
Spiders are not among the most popular creatures, yet some species can be very concerned parents. For example, the grasshopper Toxeus magnus feeds its young with a special milk.
Scientists have discovered that these spiders build nests in which the young grow. The spiders don’t carry food in them, but the baby spiders still grow. It turns out that the females of these spiders secrete a very nutritious milk. In addition, this milk contains four times more protein than cow’s milk.
Females of these grasshoppers in the nest secrete milk from special organs on the bottom. The newly hatched chicks first lick the drops of milk that the female places inside the nest. Older cubs then suck milk directly from the female.
Experiments have confirmed that the young of these spiders are completely dependent on milk. Female grasshoppers feed their young with spider milk until they are about 40 days old, when the young are approaching adulthood. Thanks to such maternal care and life in the nest, about three quarters of the young of this species live to adulthood.
