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Trophic Niches and Trophic Adaptations of Prey-Specialized Spiders from the Neotropics: A Guide

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Behaviour and Ecology of Spiders

Abstract

Spiders are the most diversified group of terrestrial predators. They employ a wide variety of feeding strategies, and exploit several prey types, from invertebrates up to small vertebrates. Many studies on the trophic ecology of spiders have focused on generalist and euryphagous species. Thus, our knowledge of prey specialist (and stenophagous) species is very limited despite the high number of endemic species occurring in the Neotropics, many of which are most probably specialized. In this chapter, we provide a guide on how to study the trophic niches of spiders in order to encourage other researchers to investigate prey-specialized species. At the beginning, we define the term trophic niche and identify its dimensions (prey type, size, and availability). We critically outline methodological approaches on how to study it. A narrow trophic niche is paralleled by the evolution of specific cognitive, behavioural, metabolic, morphological, and venomic adaptations used in prey capture. We provide an overview of these adaptations and focus on approaches to reveal them. On the basis of an extensive bibliographic review, we summarize the current state-of-the-art with respect to knowledge on the trophic ecology of Neotropical spiders, with particular emphasis on specialists. Finally, we provide recommendations for future research.

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Acknowledgments

We thank L. Petráková and to anonymous reviewers for comments on the manuscript; also thanks to David Hill, Steven Marshall, Alvaro Laborda, and Ondřej Michálek, who kindly provided nice photos of spiders. SP was supported by the Czech Science Foundation (grant no. GA15-14762S). LFG was supported by Doctoral grant 8880 from the Uruguayan National Agency for Research and Innovation (ANII) and PEDECIBA (Postgraduare Programm).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Kotlářská 2, 611 37, Brno, Czech Republic

    Stano Pekár

  2. Centro Universitario de la Región Este, sede Treinta y Tres, Universidad de la República, Treinta y Tres, Uruguay

    Luis Fernando García

  3. Laboratorio Ecología del Comportamiento, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Montevideo, Uruguay

    Luis Fernando García

  4. Entomología, Biología Animal, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay

    Carmen Viera

  5. Laboratorio Ecología del Comportamiento, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Montevideo, Uruguay

    Carmen Viera

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  1. Stano Pekár
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  2. Luis Fernando García
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  3. Carmen Viera
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Correspondence to Stano Pekár .

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  1. Entomología, Biología Animal, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay

    Carmen Viera

  2. Universidade Federal de Uberlândia Biology Institute, Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil

    Marcelo O. Gonzaga

Appendix

Appendix

List of species from the Neotropics for which data on trophic niche were collected and used in the analysis. Only species for which more than ten prey records have been made are listed.

Araneidae: Alpaida tuonabo (Chamberlin & Ivie) [Shelly 1983], A. variabilis (Keyserling) [Flórez et al. 2004], Argiope argentata (Fabricius) [Nentwig 1985], A. aurantia Lucas [Bilsing 1920, Uetz et al. 1978, Nyffeler et al. 1987, Blackledge and Wenzel 1999], A. savignyi Levi [Nentwig 1985], Aspidolasius branicki (Taczanowski) [Calixto and Levi 2006], Cyclosa caroli (Hentz) [Ibarra-Núnez et al. 2001, Moreno-Mendoza et al. 2012], C. turbinata (Walckenaer) [Nyffeler et al. 1986, Nyffeler and Sterling 1994], Cyrtophora moluccensis (Doleschall) [Lubin 1974], Eriophora edax (Blackwall) [Ceballos et al. 2005], Eriophora fuliginea (C. L. Koch) [Nentwig 1985], Gasteracantha cancriformis (Linnaeus) [Gregory 1989, Ibarra-Núnez et al. 2001], Gea heptagon (Hentz) [Nyffeler et al. 1989, Nyffeler and Sterling 1994], Mastophora cornigera (Hentz) [Stowe 1986], M. dizzydeani Eberhard [Eberhard 1980], Mecynogea lemniscata (Walckenaer) [Wise and Barata 1983], Micrathena gracilis (Walckenaer) [Uetz and Biere 1980, Uetz and Hartsock 1987], M. schreibersi (Perty) [Shelly 1984], Neoscona arabesca (Walckenaer) [Bilsing 1920, Culin and Yeargan 1982], Nephila clavipes (Linnaeus) [Nentwig 1985], Parawixia bistriata (Rengger) [Fowler and Diehl 1978, Fowler and Gobbi 1988], Scoloderus cordatus (Taczanowski) [Stowe 1978], Zygiella x-notata (Clerck) [Nentwig 1983]; Corinnidae: Attacobius attarum (Roewer) [Erthal and Tonhasca 2001], Falconina gracilis (Keyserling) [Fowler 1984]; Ctenidae: Cupiennius salei (Keyserling) [Nentwig 1986, 1990]; Dictynidae: Mallos gregalis (Simon) [Tietjen et al. 1987]; Gallieniellidae: Galianoella leucostigma (Mello-Leitao) [Goloboff 2000]; Lycosidae: Allocosa brasiliensis (Petrunkevitch) [Aisenberg et al. 2009]; Nemesiidae: Acanthogonatus francki Karsch [Pinto and Saiz 1997]; Oecobiidae: Oecobius concinnus Simon [García et al. 2014]; Oonopidae: Triaeris stenaspis Simon [Korenko et al. 2014]; Oxyopidae: Oxyopes salticus Hentz [Nyffeler et al. 1992, Nyffeler and Sterling 1994] Peucetia flava Keyserling [Gonzaga et al. 1998], P. viridans (Hentz) [Randall 1982, Nyffeler et al. 1992, Arango et al. 2012]; Pisauridae: Architis tenuis Simon [Nentwig 1985], Dolomedes triton (Walckenaer) [Zimmermann and Spence 1989]; Salticidae: Anasaitis canosa (Walckenaer) [Edwards et al. 1974, Jackson and Van Olphen 1991], Bagheera kiplingi Peckham and Peckham [Meehan et al. 2009], Cobanus mandibularis (Peckham and Peckham) [Jackson 1989], Pelegrina galathea (Walckenaer) [Dean et al. 1987], Zuniga magna Peckham and Peckham [Oliveira 1988]; Scytodidae: Scytodes longipes Lucas [Nentwig 1985]; Sicariidae: Loxosceles intermedia Mello-Leitão [Fischer et al. 2006]; Tetragnathidae: Leucage mariana (Taczanowski) [Ibarra-Núnez et al. 2001], L. venusta (Walckenaer) [Bilsing 1920, Hénaut et al. 2006], Homalometa nigritarsis Simon [Edwards and Edwards 2000]; Theraphosidae: Acanthoscurria atrox Vellard [Lourenco 1978]; Theridiidae: Anelosimus baeza Agnarsson [Guevara and Avilés 2009], A. eximius (Keyserling) [Nentwig 1985, Pasquet and Krafft 1992], A. jucundus (O. P.-Cambridge) [Nentwig and Christenson 1986], Ariamnes attentuatus O. P.-Cambridge [Eberhard 1979], Helvibis longicauda Keyserling [Gonzaga et al. 2006], Chrosiothes portalensis Levi [Pérez de la Cruz et al. 2007], C. tonala (Levi) [Eberhard 1991], Chrysso cambridgei (Petrunkevitch) [Moreno-Mendoza et al. 2012], Latrodectus mirabilis (Holmberg) [Pompozzi et al. 2013], Parasteatoda tesselata (Keyserling) [Ibarra-Núnez et al. 2001], Romphaea projiciens O. P.-Cambridge [Eberhard 1979], Theridion australe Banks [Nyffeler et al. 1988], T. evexum Keyserling [Barrantes and Weng 2007], Tidarren haemorrhoidale (Bertkau) [Nyffeler et al. 1988, Moreno-Mendoza et al. 2012]; Thomisidae: Aphantochilus rogersi O. P.-Cambridge [Castanho and Oliveira 1997], Misumenops pallidus (Keyserling) [Cheli et al. 2006, González et al. 2009], Runcinioides argenteus Mello-Leitão [Romero and Vasconocellos-Neto 2003], Strophius nigricans Keyserling [Oliveira and Sazima 1985], Tmarus stolzmanni Keyserling [Lubin 1983]; Trechaleidae: Trechalea extensa (O. P.-Cambridge) [Van Berkum 1982], Trechaleoides biocellata (Mello-Leitão) [Van Berkum 1982]; Uloboridae: Miagrammopes intempus Chickering [Lubin et al. 1978], Uloborus trilineatus Keyserling [Moreno-Mendoza et al. 2012].

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Pekár, S., García, L.F., Viera, C. (2017). Trophic Niches and Trophic Adaptations of Prey-Specialized Spiders from the Neotropics: A Guide. In: Viera, C., Gonzaga, M. (eds) Behaviour and Ecology of Spiders. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65717-2_10

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