Host Plant Availability and Nest-Site Selection of the Social Spider Stegodyphus dumicola Pocock, 1898 (Eresidae).

ABSTRACT: An animals' habitat defines the resources that are available for its use, such as host plants or food sources, and the use of these resources are critical for optimizing fitness. Spiders are abundant in all terrestrial habitats and are often associated with vegetation, which may provide structure for anchoring capture webs, attract insect prey, or provide protective function. Social spiders construct sedentary communal silk nests on host plants, but we know little about whether and how they make nest-site decisions. We examined host plant use in relation to host plant availability in the social spider Stegodyphus dumicola Pocock, 1898 (Eresidae) across different arid biomes in Namibia and analysed the role of host plant characteristics (height, spines, scent, sturdiness) on nest occ

SUBMITTER: Rose C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8777811 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature