3.3. Spider abundances
Spiders were less abundant than the ants and beetles, with a
total catch of just 28 individuals. We identified seven families of
spiders within the gardens and six outside (details specified in
Appendix B). The abundance of web-weaving spiders was higher
inside the gardens, with an average abundance (per site) of 0.40
(±0.06) inside and 0.06 (±0.02) outside. Hunting spiders were more
abundant outside of the gardens with an average abundance of
0.533 (±0.05) inside and 0.733 (±0.06) outside. There was a significant
difference between the abundances of the two functional
groups (lmer, 21
=
7.10, P = 0.008**) and a significant habitat–group
interaction (21
=
8.43, P = 0.015*).