Alternative mating tactics in a cannibalistic widow spider: do males prefer the safer option?

Kód výsledku v IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F00216224%3A14310%2F20%3A00117040" target="_blank" >RIV/00216224:14310/20:00117040 - isvavai.cz</a>

Výsledek na webu

<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2019.11.021" target="_blank" >https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2019.11.021</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2019.11.021" target="_blank" >10.1016/j.anbehav.2019.11.021</a>

Jazyk výsledku

angličtina

Název v původním jazyce

Alternative mating tactics in a cannibalistic widow spider: do males prefer the safer option?

Popis výsledku v původním jazyce

Mating generally occurs with adult females, which undergo a suite of changes in morphology, physiology and behaviour during maturation. In the brown widow spider, Latrodectus geometricus, however, males can mate with immature females during a short period before they moult to the adult stage. Mating with immature females seems beneficial for males, because they are not at risk of being cannibalized, whereas cannibalism inevitably occurs in matings with adult females. We conducted choice experiments to elucidate male preference, courtship and mating behaviour with immature and adult females of different ages. We controlled for age of the females' webs to provide males with potential web-borne attractants of similar age. We tested whether males distinguish immature females that are ready to mate (late subadult stage) from adult females and from immature females that do not mate (early subadults), and we examined male response to young versus old adult females. Males approached and mated with adult females more frequently than late subadult females, but there were no differences in the frequencies of approach to early and late subadults or to adult females of different ages. Once on the web, however, males attempted to mate with the late subadults. We suggest that web-borne volatile cues, typical of adult females, may be reduced or lacking in late subadult females, yet less volatile cues may indicate receptivity.

Název v anglickém jazyce

Alternative mating tactics in a cannibalistic widow spider: do males prefer the safer option?

Popis výsledku anglicky

Mating generally occurs with adult females, which undergo a suite of changes in morphology, physiology and behaviour during maturation. In the brown widow spider, Latrodectus geometricus, however, males can mate with immature females during a short period before they moult to the adult stage. Mating with immature females seems beneficial for males, because they are not at risk of being cannibalized, whereas cannibalism inevitably occurs in matings with adult females. We conducted choice experiments to elucidate male preference, courtship and mating behaviour with immature and adult females of different ages. We controlled for age of the females' webs to provide males with potential web-borne attractants of similar age. We tested whether males distinguish immature females that are ready to mate (late subadult stage) from adult females and from immature females that do not mate (early subadults), and we examined male response to young versus old adult females. Males approached and mated with adult females more frequently than late subadult females, but there were no differences in the frequencies of approach to early and late subadults or to adult females of different ages. Once on the web, however, males attempted to mate with the late subadults. We suggest that web-borne volatile cues, typical of adult females, may be reduced or lacking in late subadult females, yet less volatile cues may indicate receptivity.

Druh

J_imp - Článek v periodiku v databázi Web of Science

CEP obor

—

OECD FORD obor

10613 - Zoology

Projekt

—

Návaznosti

I - Institucionalni podpora na dlouhodoby koncepcni rozvoj vyzkumne organizace

Rok uplatnění

2020

Kód důvěrnosti údajů

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Název periodika

Animal Behaviour

ISSN

0003-3472

e-ISSN

1095-8282

Svazek periodika

160

Číslo periodika v rámci svazku

FEB 2020

Stát vydavatele periodika

GB - Spojené království Velké Británie a Severního Irska

Počet stran výsledku

7

Strana od-do

53-59

Kód UT WoS článku

000512386000006

EID výsledku v databázi Scopus

2-s2.0-85076985555