Some spider species rehearse for sex! Have you observed this?

[Athelas]

Hi everyone,

I recently came across an interesting study in which mature male Anelosimus studiosus mate-guard juvenile females and the pair engage in "nonconceptive" sex until she reaches maturity.

I summarize the main findings of the study here:

http://bird-n-bee.blogspot.com/2011/02/practice-makes-perfect-spiders-rehearse.html

I am wondering if any of you have ever seen something like this in other species?

Thanks!
Scott

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Interested in animal behavior? Visit The Birds and the Bees: Things you were
afraid to ask about the secret lives of animals. http://bird-n-bee.blogspot.com
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[revilo]

hi scott,

yes i read about this behavior from phidippus regius (salticidae) - must search my library for artical if you are interessted to know...

bye, oli

 

[Athelas]

Hi Oli,

Very interesting! Yes, I would be very interested if you happen to find the citation. Thank you!!

Scott

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Interested in animal behavior? Visit The Birds and the Bees: Things you were
afraid to ask about the secret lives of animals. http://bird-n-bee.blogspot.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[Silberrücken]

Hi all...

I breed and raise P. regius. MM P. regius, upon finding a subadult female, will make a silken retreat next to hers-sometimes even encasing hers. He will guard this female until she molts into an adult.

I have never observed this behavior, only seeing him guard her with fierce determination. At feeding time, he will slap away any prey that gets too near her. The female must catch food while he is occupied. Only when he sees her feeding, will he take a prey for himself.

I have new sacs and slings, and I will study very carefully again to see if I witness this behavior. I will provide photos and video if anyone is interested in this.

I too would like to see the article, as I am extremely interested in anything about Phidippus regius.

Thank you, and Cheers!

S.

 

[Venom]

Hi all...

I breed and raise P. regius. MM P. regius, upon finding a subadult female, will make a silken retreat next to hers-sometimes even encasing hers. He will guard this female until she molts into an adult.

I have never observed this behavior, only seeing him guard her with fierce determination. At feeding time, he will slap away any prey that gets too near her. The female must catch food while he is occupied. Only when he sees her feeding, will he take a prey for himself.

I have new sacs and slings, and I will study very carefully again to see if I witness this behavior. I will provide photos and video if anyone is interested in this.

I too would like to see the article, as I am extremely interested in anything about Phidippus regius.

Thank you, and Cheers!

S.

+1 !

I'm very interested in this!!

 

[revilo]

hi all,

well, at first after reading your post silberrücken i was wondering about your critical voice...
because it's not a secret that mate guarding of subadult females is frequently observed in the genus phidippus - like in p. regius, p. johnsoni,...
to read for example here : G.B. Edwards, 2000, Regal Jumping Spider, Phidippus regius C.L. Koch (Arachnida:Salticidae) University of Florida document EENY152 and here Edwards, 2008, Anecdotal Fieldnotes on Florida Phidippus...ISSN 1944-8120. more sources are easy to find...

so because i was wondering, i decided to open the link of the first post here
and yeah, what should i say - my stupid that i didn't done this before ! :wall: because than i was understanding what thread opener is talking about :
"heavy petting spiders" LOL - great ! i never heard this before !

so, thanks to you silberrücken :clap:, because without your critical post i would never open the link - case seemed to be clear for me...

cheers, oli

 

[Arborealis]

very interesting indeed. I must look into this more and see if there isn't more research out there on the subject.

 

[Elithial]

Jumping spiders tend to have some crazy 'social' rituals in particular with mating and fighting. I'd love to hear more about their little antics with females. Of course there's always the downside when the bigger female decides that protective male is more tasty than useful. >>