Sex Role–Dependent Behavioral and Architectural Divergence in a Jumping Spider

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  Sex Role–Dependent Behavioral and Architectural Divergence in a Jumping Spider ABSTRACT Sex differences in behavior and functional traits are often attributed to differences in mating effort intensity, but the role of sex-specific parental demands remains poorly understood. Using the jumping spider Toxeus maxillosus —where males engage in mate searching and courtship without providing parental care, while females provide extended maternal care from egg attendance to offspring maturity (around 3 months)—we conducted an exploratory investigation into whether these distinct selective pressures led to divergence in spatial behaviors and nest architecture. Results revealed that males and females showed equivalent accuracy, latency, and learning-related performance in both a route-planning test under water stress and a color-pattern associative memory task. In contrast, during nest-construction assays, females built complex, multi-entrance structures that closely matched the container'...

An extraordinary colonial spider community in Sulfur Cave (Albania/Greece) sustained by chemoautotrophy

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An extraordinary colonial spider community in Sulfur Cave (Albania/Greece) sustained by chemoautotrophy

Abstract

We report the discovery and detailed analysis of an extraordinary colonial spider assemblage in Sulfur Cave, a chemoautotrophic sulfidic ecosystem located on the Albania-Greece border. The colony, comprising an estimated 69,000 individuals of Tegenaria domestica (Agelenidae) and more than 42,000 of Prinerigone vagans (Linyphiidae), spans a surface area of over 100 m²—representing the first documented case of colonial web formation in these species. Stable isotope analyses (δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N) revealed that the trophic web sustaining this assemblage is fueled by in situ primary production from sulfur-oxidizing microbial biofilms then transferred through chironomid larvae and adults to higher trophic levels. Morphological and molecular data confirmed the identity of the two spider species and revealed that their populations in Sulfur Cave are genetically distinct from other populations. Regarding T. domestica, we found a seasonal pattern in fecundity, with significantly larger egg clutches in early summer. Microbiome analysis of this species also revealed a lower Shannon diversity in the cave population compared with a surface individual captured nearby. Our findings unveil a unique case of facultative coloniality in this cosmopolitan spider, likely driven by resource abundance in a chemoautotrophic cave, and provide new insights into the adaptation and trophic integration of surface species in sulfidic subterranean habitats.

Urák I, Vrenozi B, Głąbiak Z, Lecoquierre N, Eiberger C, Maraun M, Ştefan A, Flot J-F, Brad T, Dainelli L, Sarbu SM, Băncilă RI (2025) An extraordinary colonial spider community in Sulfur Cave (Albania/Greece) sustained by chemoautotrophy. Subterranean Biology 53: 155-177. https://doi.org/10.3897/subtbiol.53.162344