Sex is not a pleasant experience for a female Harpactea sadistica. After a brief dance, the male bites her and, with rotating motions, drills a needle-sharp penis into her belly. He ignores her genital opening and ejaculates directly into her body. For good reason, this style of sex (also practiced by bedbugs) is known as traumatic insemination. Normally, the last male that mates with the female would fertilise her eggs – his sperm would flush out those from previous mates. But males of H.sadistica bypass that competition by taking a more direct approach.

More: Traumatic insemination – male spider pierces female’s underside with needle-sharp penis