Might nitrogen limitation promote omnivory among carnivorous arthropods? Comment

Wilder, Shawn M.; Eubanks, Micky D.

doi:10.1890/09-2080.1

Cited by 42 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Understanding the mechanisms governing the dietary choices of wild carnivores is fundamental to understand the evolution and adaptations of predators, as well as their roles in structuring ecological communities (Wilder and Eubanks 2010;Simpson and Raubenheimer 2012). Macronutrient requirements, food selection and dietary intake are likely to differ between sexes due to physiological differences and post-ingestive nutrient processing (Maklakov et al 2008;Morehouse et al 2010;Senior et al 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex-specific macronutrient foraging strategies in a highly successful marine predator: the Australasian gannet

et al. 2016

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Farewell Spit gannetry in New Zealand. Our results showed intra-and inter-specific variation in the protein, lipid and water composition of prey captured by our sample of 111 Australasian gannets. In addition, we observed significant differences in the Australasian gannets' nutritional niche between seasons. We provide evidence of sex-specific macronutrient foraging strategies in a successful marine predator in the wild. We have shown that in spite of fluctuations in the nutritional composition of foods available to Australasian gannets, males consistently capture prey with higher protein-to-lipid ratios and lower lipid-to-water ratios than females. These results aid to better understand the evolutionary relationship between macronutrient selection and sex-specific traits in wild animals. They also suggest an incentive for these predators to combine individually imbalanced but nutritionally complementary foods to achieve dietary balance, further highlighting the likelihood that prey selection is guided by the balance of macronutrients, rather than energy alone.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex-specific macronutrient foraging strategies in a highly successful marine predator: the Australasian gannet

et al. 2016

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“…The growth and reproduction of predators can be strongly affected by prey quality, with higher reproductive output in terrestrial predators when feeding in high protein (i.e., high N) prey (Barry & Wilder, 2013; Simpson et al., 2015; Wilder, 2011, 2013; Wilder & Eubanks, 2010; Wilder et al., 2013). Some studies also suggest that nonprotein energy (carbohydrates and lipids) may play an important role in predator population dynamics (Simpson et al., 2015).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Caught in the web: Spider web architecture affects prey specialization and spider–prey stoichiometric relationships

Ludwig

Barbour

Guevara

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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Quantitative approaches to predator–prey interactions are central to understanding the structure of food webs and their dynamics. Different predatory strategies may influence the occurrence and strength of trophic interactions likely affecting the rates and magnitudes of energy and nutrient transfer between trophic levels and stoichiometry of predator–prey interactions. Here, we used spider–prey interactions as a model system to investigate whether different spider web architectures—orb, tangle, and sheet‐tangle—affect the composition and diet breadth of spiders and whether these, in turn, influence stoichiometric relationships between spiders and their prey. Our results showed that web architecture partially affects the richness and composition of the prey captured by spiders. Tangle‐web spiders were specialists, capturing a restricted subset of the prey community (primarily Diptera), whereas orb and sheet‐tangle web spiders were generalists, capturing a broader range of prey types. We also observed elemental imbalances between spiders and their prey. In general, spiders had higher requirements for both nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) than those provided by their prey even after accounting for prey biomass. Larger P imbalances for tangle‐web spiders than for orb and sheet‐tangle web spiders suggest that trophic specialization may impose strong elemental constraints for these predators unless they display behavioral or physiological mechanisms to cope with nutrient limitation. Our findings suggest that integrating quantitative analysis of species interactions with elemental stoichiometry can help to better understand the occurrence of stoichiometric imbalances in predator–prey interactions.

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“…Taylor & Pfannenstiel (2009) showed that Cheiracanthium inclusum Hentz that feed on nectar increase their fitness with higher survival, growth, and fecundity. Recent studies have shown that lipids may be important limiting nutrients for spiders and other carnivores (Raubenheimer et al, 2007;Salomon et al, 2008;Wilder & Eubanks, 2010). Honey contains a broader spectrum of sugars (including melezitose, raffinose, melibiose, lactose, and maltose) and important components (including a-tocopherol, ascorbic acid, flavonoids, and phenolics), which can be considered as a dietary supplement (Mendes et al, 1998;Turhan et al, 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Preference for feeding on honey solution and its effect on survival, development, and fecundity of Ebrechtella tricuspidata

Yao

et al. 2011

Entomologia Experimentalis Et Applicata

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Members of the spider families Thomisidae, Salticidae, Miturgidae, Anyphaenidae, and Corinnidae have been observed on floral and extrafloral nectaries of plants, where they are presumably feeding on nectar. Nectar feeding is a phenomenon that has long intrigued biologists. However, few studies have focused on the effect of nectar on biological characteristics of these spiders. The aim of this study was to determine whether crab spiders, Ebrechtella tricuspidata (Fabricius) (Araneae: Thomisidae), show an active preference for honey solution (a simulated nectar source) and to test the effect of honey solution on the survival and development time of spiderlings and the fecundity of adult E. tricuspidata. The results showed that the number of females feeding on the 10, 20, and 30% honey solution was significantly higher than those feeding on water alone, and there was no difference in the number of females feeding on the three concentrations of honey solution. Significantly more E. tricuspidata preferred feeding on the 20% honey solution, and they spent significantly more time feeding on 20% honey solution than on water, regardless of whether they were males or females, adults or spiderlings. Ingestion of honey solution significantly increased the survival and shortened the development time of E. tricuspidata. Female spiders that fed on honey solution had a shorter pre-oviposition period and laid more eggs than those given only water. Our results suggest that nectar could be a high-quality supplementary food to maintain normal growth and metabolism in spiderlings and adult female spiders in nature.

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Might nitrogen limitation promote omnivory among carnivorous arthropods? Comment

Cited by 42 publications

References 28 publications

Sex-specific macronutrient foraging strategies in a highly successful marine predator: the Australasian gannet

Sex-specific macronutrient foraging strategies in a highly successful marine predator: the Australasian gannet

Caught in the web: Spider web architecture affects prey specialization and spider–prey stoichiometric relationships

Preference for feeding on honey solution and its effect on survival, development, and fecundity of Ebrechtella tricuspidata

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