Male sexual behaviour elicited by a hybrid pheromone: a comparative study on Lycosa thorelli, L. carbonelli, and their hybrid progeny (Araneae, Lycosidae)

Abstract

Three groups of spiders were raised from birth in the laboratory: Lycosa thorelli, L. carbonelli, and their experimentally obtained hybrid progeny. We analyzed the behaviour of the three male groups in the presence of a hybrid sexual pheromone. From the tests, 22 behaviour units were identified; 11 were simple and 11 were complex, the latter resulting from temporal overlapping of two or three simple units. Hybrid males showed behaviours similar to those of each of the parental species, but their characteristics were mainly intermediate between the two species. Variability in sexual behaviour of the hybrids was similar to that of parental males. Parental males exposed to a hybrid stimulus showed an activity level intermediate to previous descriptions of sexual behaviour elicited by conspecific and heterospecific stimuli. The importance of certain visual and acoustic displays for reproductive isolation, and their possible inheritance mechanisms, are a particular focus of discussion.

Multisensory Cues and Multimodal Communication in Spiders: Insights from Video/Audio Playback Studies

“…Spiders may use chemical cues in prey detection or recognition of favorable or unpalatable prey types, or even in predator recognition [Persons and Uetz, 1996a, b;Punzo and Kukoyi, 1997;Persons et al, 2001]. Many spider species produce chemical compounds for social recognition [Krafft, 1982;Pollard et al, 1987], as well as species recognition and reproductive isolation [Jackson, 1987;Costa et al, 1997;Barth, 2002]. Spider pheromones are most often deposited by females in, or on, silk (e.g., webs or draglines) which attracts potential mates and may release male courtship behavior even in the absence of all other cues Rovner, 1980, 1982;Suter and Renkes,1982;Roland, 1984;Barth, 1993;Schulz and Toft, 1993;Costa et al, 1997;Trabalon et al, 1997].…”

“…Many spider species produce chemical compounds for social recognition [Krafft, 1982;Pollard et al, 1987], as well as species recognition and reproductive isolation [Jackson, 1987;Costa et al, 1997;Barth, 2002]. Spider pheromones are most often deposited by females in, or on, silk (e.g., webs or draglines) which attracts potential mates and may release male courtship behavior even in the absence of all other cues Rovner, 1980, 1982;Suter and Renkes,1982;Roland, 1984;Barth, 1993;Schulz and Toft, 1993;Costa et al, 1997;Trabalon et al, 1997]. Male spiders are known to use the presence of female pheromones in silk (or the composition of silk-borne pheromones) to determine her reproductive status [Jackson, 1987] and alter their courtship as appropriate.…”

Changes of Sex Pheromone Communication Systems Associated with Tebufenozide and Abamectin Resistance in Diamondback Moth, Plutella xylostella (L.)

“…This system, particularly in moths, is highly complex and speciesspecific (Roelofs and Comeau 1969;Lanier and Wood 1975;Costa et al 1997). Therefore, it often is considered as a powerful force for reproductive isolation and, thus, speciation (Cardé and Baker 1984).…”

Nuptial gifts and sexual behavior in two species of spider (Araneae, Trechaleidae, Paratrechalea)

“…Courtship is traditionally viewed as an intersexual communication mechanism (Krafft 1982;Robinson 1982;Peretti et al 2006) acting during the entire mating process, providing the stage for species recognition (Costa and Capocasale 1984;Costa et al 1997;Jackson and Pollard 1997;Simó et al 2002), mate choice (Fernandez-Montraveta and Schmitt 1994) and cryptic female choice (Eberhard 1985;Eberhard 1996;Peretti et al 2006). Some authors assume that sexual behavior differences among spiders, mainly during courtship, are the first and most efficient mechanism of reproductive isolation, with clear influence on evolutionary histories and speciation patterns (Costa and Capocasale 1984;Foelix 1996;Miller et al 1998).…”