Can Female Wolf Spiders Sense Male Infection Status?

Abstract

Record ID: 266

Award(s): Excellence in Undergraduate Research Mentorship; Excellence in Research Communication

Program Affiliation: Capstone

Presentation Type: Poster

Abstract: Animals may be at risk of pathogen exposure from their mating partners, and it would therefore be advantageous for individuals to be able detect infection and avoid risky mates. Previous studies have shown that female wolf spiders can sense male infection status from chemical cues possibly contained in the hydrocarbons of their abdominal cuticle (CHCs) . The primary goal of this research project was to investigate the potential for females to detect of male CHC chemical cues and avoid them. Juvenile male and female S. ocreata were collected at the Cincinnati Nature Center and raised under controlled lab conditions to maturity. One subset of males (the "infected" treatment) were exposed to a sub-lethal dose of the bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa and then rubbed with filter paper to collect CHCs. A second treatment group had CHCs collected from uninfected males. Females were then placed in an arena with filter paper containing CHCs from one of these treatments (infected males, uninfected males) or a blank filter paper as a control treatment group, then recorded for their number of visits to each stimulus. Although data are incomplete and still being analyzed, results will allow us to determine whether females can detect differences among male treatments.