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

作　　者：Linda Hernandez Duran David Thomas Wilson Tasmin Lee Rymer 

机构地区：[1]College of Science and Engineering,James Cook University,P.O.Box 6811,Cairns,QLD 4870,Australia [2]Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Sciences,James Cook University,Cairns,QLD 4870,Australia [3]Centre for Molecular Therapeutics,Austr alian Institute for Tropical Health and Medicine,James Cook University,Cairns,QLD 4878,Australia

出　　处：《Current Zoology》2023年第6期766-774,共9页动物学报（英文版）

摘　　要：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 behaviors between species.At the species level,we found that H.valida showed consistency in risk-taking behavior 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 behavioral traits are likely more flexible than others,and that the repeatability of behaviors may be species-specific in funnel-webs.When we compared species,we found differences in risk-taking behavior and defensiveness.This study provides novel insights to understanding variation in behavioral traits within and between species of funnel-web spiders,suggesting that some behavioral 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 behavior and venom deployment in venomous animals,and a greater understanding of behavior in these medically significant and iconic spiders thatareof conservation concern.

关 键 词：ARACHNIDS behavior ecological contexts flexibility mygalomorphae REPEATABILITY 

分 类 号：Q959[生物学—动物学]