m ‐Aminophenylacetylene induces maternal care in a predatory spider

In this study, we investigated maternal care inPardosa pseudoannulata (Araneae, Lycosidae) females. We proposed that the physical interaction between pulli and mother spiders induces maternal care viam-aminophenylacetylene (m-A), a novel regulator of maternal care. The presence of pulli on the dorsal abdomen of non-mother spiders suppressed pulli predation and increased the pulli-carrying rate, and the absence of pulli on the mother spiders increased pulli predation and decreased the pulli-carrying rate. The compoundm-A was abundant in mother spiders, and it could be induced in non-mother spiders when they carried pulli. The topical application ofm-A to non-mother spiders andm-A injection decreased pulli predation and increased the pulli-carrying rate, respectively; these findings indicate thatm-A in both internal tissues and the integument is required for the induction of maternal care behavior, and the interaction between pulli and females induces the production ofm-A. In-depth study of the regulatory mechanism of maternal care will enhance our understanding of spider biology and behavior.

Source: Insect Science - February 5, 2024 Category: Biology Authors: Yunru Chen, Na Yu, Shuchen Dong, Guanqun Li, Huiya Pan, Zonglei Guo, Zewen Liu Tags: ORIGINAL ARTICLE Source Type: research