Consistency in boldness expression varies with ecological context in a jumping spider

Chang, Chia-Chen; Klomp, Danielle A.; Norma‐Rashid, Y.; Li, Daiqin

doi:10.1111/eth.12925

Cited by 5 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…Conversely, spiders that display little to no freezing behavior are thought to be bolder and/or more aggressive. Some spider researchers refer to this reaction as a "startle response" and may even elicit the reaction by other means, but the duration of the freezing afterward is interpreted in the same way [21]. In fact, regardless of the means of inducing the reaction, this interpretation is consistent across studies of other arthropods [22][23][24].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Startle Responses of Jorō Spiders (Trichonephila clavata) to Artificial Disturbance

Davis,

Anerao

2023

Arthropoda

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The jorō spider (Trichonephila clavata, originally from east Asia) has been introduced in the southeastern United States, and is rapidly expanding this range, leading to questions about what facilitates this spread. Meanwhile, its cousin, the golden silk spider (T. clavipes), already has a range that covers most of the southeast. In an ongoing effort to understand the behavior of jorō spiders in their introduced range, we undertook the current project to evaluate how they react to perceived threats, which can inform us on how a species interacts with conspecifics, or how well it can tolerate anthropogenic disturbances. We collected mature females of both Trichonephila species, plus three locally common orb-weaving species in Georgia, and we evaluated the time spent immobile after experiencing a mild disturbance (a brief puff of air). We also collected similar “air puff response” data for five other North American species from the published literature. Collectively, the dataset totaled 453 observations of freezing behavior across 10 spider species. Comparing these data across species revealed that most spiders remained immobile for under a minute after the stimulus. Meanwhile, both Trichonephila spiders remained immobile for over an hour, which appears to be unprecedented, and suggests that spiders in this genus are the “shyest” ever documented. This reaction could also allow Trichonephila spiders to tolerate urban environments by remaining motionless throughout each disturbance instead of fleeing.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 81%

Startle Responses of Jorō Spiders (Trichonephila clavata) to Artificial Disturbance

Davis,

Anerao

2023

Arthropoda

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“…Different ecological contexts (i.e., foraging, mating, and exploration) affect the ways in which animals respond to their environments, either adjusting their behavior or maintaining consistent behavior over time (i.e., repeatability, Chang et al 2019 ). Our study contributes to a broader understanding of intra- and inter-individual variation in Australian funnel-web spiders, which provides insights into the ability of individuals to respond to different environmental conditions, and potentially to use their biological weapons, namely silk and venom ( Hernández Duran et al 2021 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In dangerous situations, such as under high predation risk, an animal that adjusts its behavior in response to the stimulus ( Chang et al 2019 ) may have a greater chance of survival. We did not find repeatability in aggressiveness in any of the funnel-web species in response to a direct predation threat (i.e., physical prodding, Jackson and Pollard 1990 ; Stankowich 2009 ), suggesting that spiders dynamically adjust or modulate behaviors in response to this type of stimulus.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring behavioral traits over different contexts in four species of Australian funnel-web spiders

2022

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Australian funnel-web spiders are arguably the most venomous spiders in the world, with much research focusing on this aspect of their biology. However, other aspects related to their life history, ecology and behaviour have been overlooked. For the first time, we assessed repeatability, namely risk-taking behaviour, aggressiveness and activity in the contexts of predation, conspecific tolerance and exploration of a new territory in four species of Australian funnel-web spiders: two are closely related, Hadronyche valida and H. infensa, and two have overlapping distributions but occupy different habitats, H. cerberea and Atrax robustus. We also compared behaviours between species. At the species level, we found that H. valida showed consistency in risk-taking behaviour when exposed to a predator stimulus, aggressiveness against conspecifics, and exploration of a new territory. In contrast, in the other species, only A. robustus showed repeatability in the context of exploration of a new territory. These results suggest that some behavioural traits are likely more flexible than others, and that the repeatability of behaviours may be species-specific in funnel-webs. When we compared species, we found differences in risk-taking behaviour and defensiveness. This study provides novel insights to understanding variation in behavioural traits within and between species of funnel-web spiders, suggesting that some behavioural traits are likely context- and/or species-dependent, as a result of their evolutionary history. These findings provide key insights for understanding the ecological role of behaviour and venom deployment in venomous animals, and a greater understanding of behaviour in these medically significantly and iconic spiders that are of conservation concern.

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“…Sometimes individuals show high similarity in the behavioral mean, but there may be individual differences in behavioral predictability ( Stamps et al 2012 ). For example, in an araneophagous jumping spider, Portia labiata (Salticidae), the intraindividual variability (IIV) in boldness may increase in the presence of a conspecific ( Chang et al 2019 ). Higher IIV in a behavior indicated lower predictability (i.e., individuals behave less consistently), which may be more advantageous for P. labiata in a dangerous situation ( Chang et al 2019 ).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…For example, in an araneophagous jumping spider, Portia labiata (Salticidae), the intraindividual variability (IIV) in boldness may increase in the presence of a conspecific ( Chang et al 2019 ). Higher IIV in a behavior indicated lower predictability (i.e., individuals behave less consistently), which may be more advantageous for P. labiata in a dangerous situation ( Chang et al 2019 ). These examples indicate that arthropods, particularly spiders, are suitable model organisms to provide a unique insight into behavioral variations.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex-specific life-history strategies among immature jumping spiders: Differences in body parameters and behavior

et al. 2022

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Selection forces often generate sex-specific differences in various traits closely related to fitness. While in adult spiders (Araneae), sexes often differ in colouration, body size, antipredator or foraging behaviour, such sex-related differences are less pronounced amongst immatures. However, sex-specific life-history strategies may also be adaptive for immatures. Thus, we hypothesized that, among spiders, immature individuals show different life-history strategies that are expressed as sex-specific differences in body parameters and behavioural features, and also in their relationships. We used immature individuals of a protandrous jumping spider, Carrhotus xanthogramma, and examined sex-related differences. Results showed that males have higher mass and larger prosoma than females. Males were more active and more risk-tolerant than females. Male activity increased with time, and larger males tended to capture the prey faster than small ones, while females showed no such patterns. However, females reacted to the threatening abiotic stimuli more with the increasing number of test sessions. In both males and females, individuals with better body condition tended to be more risk-averse. Spiders showed no sex-specific differences in inter-individual behavioural consistency and in intra-individual behavioural variation in the measured behavioural traits. Finally, we also found evidence for behavioural syndromes (i.e. correlation between different behaviours), where in males only the activity correlated with the risk-taking behaviour, but in females all the measured behavioural traits were involved. The present study demonstrates that C. xanthogramma sexes follow different life-history strategies even before attaining maturity.

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Consistency in boldness expression varies with ecological context in a jumping spider

Cited by 5 publications

References 41 publications

Startle Responses of Jorō Spiders (Trichonephila clavata) to Artificial Disturbance

Startle Responses of Jorō Spiders (Trichonephila clavata) to Artificial Disturbance

Exploring behavioral traits over different contexts in four species of Australian funnel-web spiders

Sex-specific life-history strategies among immature jumping spiders: Differences in body parameters and behavior

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