Jumping spiders attend to information from multiple modalities when preparing to jump

Aguilar-Arguello, Samuel; Taylor, Alex H.; Nelson, Ximena J.

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2020.11.013

Cited by 9 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…To be fair, there are issues of scale, and background motion of leaves on the forest floor is limited except in the winter, when winds are greatest (Boerner & Kooser 1989). However, even small amounts of wind movement within leaf litter, along with changing light and shadows might be important to tiny animals like spiders (Théry 2001;Matchette et al 2019;Aguilar-Arguello et al 2021). In addition, for wolf spiders in the genus Schizocosa, where species use vibratory and visual communication, the complexity of the leaf litter environment has an influence on efficacy of multimodal signals (Elias et al 2010;Uetz et al 2013).…”

Section: Discussion/conclusionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection of wolf spider courtship signals against complex chromatic backgrounds by intended and unintended receivers

Uetz

Gilbert

Wilson

et al. 2023

Preprint

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We used video digitization and playback of courting male Schizocosa ocreata wolf spiders to examine responses of intended receivers and eavesdroppers viewing manipulated spider color displayed against background treatments of complex litter with different chromatic contrast. Intended receivers (female S. ocreata) were more likely to detect males with higher background intensity contrast, while a different pattern for receptivity suggests chromatic contrast matters more for mate recognition. Social eavesdroppers (conspecific males) were similar but had a significant interaction of spider color x background, suggesting possible differences in color perception between sexes. Interceptive eavesdroppers (predators) differed across taxa in some respects but were similar in others. Vertebrates (toads) were quicker to orient than invertebrates (spider predators). Toads took longer to respond to control spiders on complex color backgrounds but were quicker with the same spider against complex greyscale backgrounds. Color differences among prey stimuli appear to be less important than contrast for both toads and wolf spiders with dichromatic vision. However, color of the prey spider stimulus matters more for jumping spiders with trichromatic vision, as they respond more quickly to natural color and RGB average color than gray monochrome stimuli. Analyses of chromatic and luminance intensity contrast values for spiders and backgrounds suggest that for both intended female receivers and eavesdroppers, intensity and chromatic contrast influence detection and mate recognition in complex and subtle ways. These results support the hypothesis that receivers with different visual sensory capacities vary in response to color and contrast of courting male spiders against complex backgrounds.

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Section: Discussion/conclusionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Detection of wolf spider courtship signals against complex chromatic backgrounds by intended and unintended receivers

Uetz

Gilbert

Wilson

et al. 2023

Preprint

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“…This indicates that rotations are likely for insects taking-off from flexible stems and leaves with varying orientations, as observed in our field videos. Consequently, it would be interesting to investigate how taking-off and landing behaviors differ for leaves, branches and solid ground with differing compliance and textures (Burrows and Sutton, 2008;Mo et al, 2020a;Ribak et al, 2012), as well as the effect of wind speed and orientation (Aguilar-Arguello et al, 2021;Wolfin et al, 2019). Moreover, while field studies of SLFs have found that adults tend to land on vertical, high contrast structures such as posts (Baker et al, 2021;Wolfin et al, 2019;Zeng et al, 2020), this possibility has not been investigated for nymphs.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Putting a new spin on insect jumping performance using 3D modeling and computer simulations of spotted lanternfly nymphs

Li,

Xu,

Beery

et al. 2023

Preprint

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How animals jump and land on a variety of surfaces is an ecologically important problem relevant to bioinspired robotics. We investigated this topic in the context of the jumping biomechanics of the planthopper Lycorma delicatula (the spotted lanternfly, SLF), an invasive insect in the US that jumps frequently for dispersal, locomotion, and predator evasion. High-speed video was used to analyze jumping by SLF nymphs from take-off to impact on compliant surfaces. These insects used rapid hindleg extensions to achieve high take-off speeds (2.7-3.4 m/s) and accelerations (800-1000 ms-2), with midair trajectories consistent with zero-drag ballistic motion without steering. Despite rotating rapidly (5-45 Hz) in the air about time-varying axes of rotation, they landed successfully in 58.9% of trials; they also attained the most successful impact orientation significantly more often than predicted by chance, consistent with their using attitude control. Notably, these insects were able to land successfully when impacting surfaces at all angles, pointing to the emerging importance of collisional recovery behaviors. To further understand their rotational dynamics, we created realistic 3D rendered models of SLFs and used them to compute their mechanical properties during jumping. Computer simulations based on these models and drag torques estimated from fits to tracked data successfully predicted several features of their measured rotational kinematics. This analysis showed that SLF nymphs are able to use posture changes and drag torques to control their angular velocity, and hence their orientation, thereby facilitating predominately successful landings when jumping.

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“…Salticids are known for their cognitive behavior, defined as how information is acquired and mediates behavior through evaluative processes, such that decision-making is the cognitive process interfacing assessment and discernible behavior (Blumstein & Bouskila 1996). Comparative studies suggest that salticid cognitive ability is graded (Tarsitano & Jackson 1992; Cross & Jackson 2016; Aguilar-Arguello et al 2019, 2020, 2021), with the genus Portia considered the salticid equivalent of Einstein. As Portia behavior has been reviewed elsewhere (e.g., Jackson & Cross 2011; Aguilar-Arguello & Nelson 2021), I will only lightly touch on Portia and more generally discuss other lesser-known salticids with comparable cognitive attributes.…”

Section: Cognitionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A road map of jumping spider behavior

Nelson

2023

The Journal of Arachnology

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The largest family of spiders, jumping spiders (Salticidae), is known for performing complex visually mediated predatory and courtship behavior. As cursorial predators, they rely on their sensory systems to identify objects at a distance. Based on these assessments, salticids perform flexible and target-specific behavioral sequences which demonstrate a high level of cognitive processing. Recent studies have highlighted the role of other sensory modalities in these processes, such as chemoreception and mechanoreception, and elucidated the visual cues used for object identification, including motion, color, contrast, and shape-based cues. Until recently, sensory modalities other than vision were largely overlooked, but current advances in technology now allow us to probe their sensory and cognitive capabilities, as well as how these are shaped by experience. In this review, I provide an overview of current knowledge of salticid behavior and the sensory systems underpinning this behavior, and highlight areas in need of further research. This review focusses on our understanding of salticid communication, parental behavior, personality, antipredator behavior, and diet, as well as habitat selection. I argue that a historical vision-based focus on a small number of species due to their coloration or their unusual behavior provides a springboard for a deeper understanding of the general cognitive and sensory attributes that have evolved in this lineage, of which we yet have much to learn.

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Jumping spiders attend to information from multiple modalities when preparing to jump

Cited by 9 publications

References 59 publications

Detection of wolf spider courtship signals against complex chromatic backgrounds by intended and unintended receivers

Detection of wolf spider courtship signals against complex chromatic backgrounds by intended and unintended receivers

Putting a new spin on insect jumping performance using 3D modeling and computer simulations of spotted lanternfly nymphs

A road map of jumping spider behavior

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