To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma
We report a sequence of unusual male behaviors observed in <i>Nephila pilipes</i> (Fabricius, 1793) (Araneae: Nephilidae Simon, 1894), a sexually size dimorphic tropical spider species in Singapore. We documented a male suitor using his mouth parts (chelicerae) rather than his copulatory...
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MDPI AG
2025-04-01
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| author | Matjaž Kuntner Xin Xu Daiqin Li |
| author_facet | Matjaž Kuntner Xin Xu Daiqin Li |
| author_sort | Matjaž Kuntner |
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| description | We report a sequence of unusual male behaviors observed in <i>Nephila pilipes</i> (Fabricius, 1793) (Araneae: Nephilidae Simon, 1894), a sexually size dimorphic tropical spider species in Singapore. We documented a male suitor using his mouth parts (chelicerae) rather than his copulatory organs (pedipalps) to repeatedly probe female genitals. The behaviors may have served as a strategy to assess the female’s mating status, functioned as a courtship strategy, or, most plausibly, represented an attempt to remove a genital plug. The documented chrono-sequence culminated in the male’s attempted commensalism, followed by an aggressive attack by the female, resulting in near-fatal injury to the male. Notably, the attack did not escalate into cannibalism, suggesting that the extreme size difference in <i>Nephila</i> may render small males unappealing as prey. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-69830f0cedcd4476aaeec552f4d6975a |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1424-2818 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
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| record_format | Article |
| series | Diversity |
| spelling | doaj-art-69830f0cedcd4476aaeec552f4d6975a2025-08-20T02:28:20ZengMDPI AGDiversity1424-28182025-04-0117428110.3390/d17040281To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s DilemmaMatjaž Kuntner0Xin Xu1Daiqin Li2Department of Organisms and Ecosystems Research, National Institute of Biology, Večna pot 121, SI-1000 Ljubljana, SloveniaCentre for Behavioural Ecology & Evolution, School of Life Sciences, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, ChinaCentre for Behavioural Ecology & Evolution, School of Life Sciences, Hubei University, Wuhan 430062, ChinaWe report a sequence of unusual male behaviors observed in <i>Nephila pilipes</i> (Fabricius, 1793) (Araneae: Nephilidae Simon, 1894), a sexually size dimorphic tropical spider species in Singapore. We documented a male suitor using his mouth parts (chelicerae) rather than his copulatory organs (pedipalps) to repeatedly probe female genitals. The behaviors may have served as a strategy to assess the female’s mating status, functioned as a courtship strategy, or, most plausibly, represented an attempt to remove a genital plug. The documented chrono-sequence culminated in the male’s attempted commensalism, followed by an aggressive attack by the female, resulting in near-fatal injury to the male. Notably, the attack did not escalate into cannibalism, suggesting that the extreme size difference in <i>Nephila</i> may render small males unappealing as prey.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/17/4/281sexual size dimorphismeSSD mating syndromegenital pluggingsexual cannibalism<i>Nephila pilipes</i>Nephilidae |
| spellingShingle | Matjaž Kuntner Xin Xu Daiqin Li To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma Diversity sexual size dimorphism eSSD mating syndrome genital plugging sexual cannibalism <i>Nephila pilipes</i> Nephilidae |
| title | To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma |
| title_full | To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma |
| title_fullStr | To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma |
| title_full_unstemmed | To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma |
| title_short | To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma |
| title_sort | to mate or to steal food a male spider s dilemma |
| topic | sexual size dimorphism eSSD mating syndrome genital plugging sexual cannibalism <i>Nephila pilipes</i> Nephilidae |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/17/4/281 |
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