Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Use of local cues in the night-time navigation of the wandering desert spider Leucorchestris arenicola (Araneae, Sparassidae)

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Comparative Physiology A Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Adult male Leucorchestris arenicola can walk round-trips of several tens of meters in search of females. Most excursions end with the spiders returning to their burrow. For small animals homing over distances of several meters is theoretically impossible without the aid of external cues. It was investigated, whether the spiders use local cues or they rely solely on global cues. Individually marked male spiders were captured during their excursions and displaced several meters inside an opaque box. Ten out of twelve displaced spiders returned to their burrows. This shows that the male L. arenicola are using local cues during their homing, as the comparatively small displacement distances could not be detected by means of global, e.g. celestial cues. In order to test whether the spiders could be using olfactory guidance, the burrows were displaced by 2 m while the spiders were out on their journeys. In 12 out of 15 experiments, the spiders did not find their burrows. These results show that the burrows do not function as olfactory beacons for the homing spiders.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bartels M (1929) Sinnesphysiologische und physiologische Untersuchungen an der Trichterspinne Agelena labyrinthica (Cl.). Z Vergl Physiol 10:527–591

    Google Scholar 

  • Barth FG, Nakagawa T, Eguchi E (1993) Vision in the ctenid spider Cupiennius salei: spectral range and absolute sensitivity. J Exp Biol 181:63–79

    Google Scholar 

  • Benhamou S, Sauvé JP, Bovet P (1990) Spatial memory in large scale movements: efficiency and limitation of the egocentric coding process. J Theor Biol 145:1–12

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Birkhofer K, Scheu S, Henschel JR (2006) Does territorial behaviour in the desert-living spider Leucorchestris arenicola (Araneae: Sparassidae) affect its spatial distribution? Bull Br Arachnol Soc 13:341–346

    Google Scholar 

  • Boles LC, Lohmann KJ (2003) True navigation and magnetic maps in spiny lobsters. Nature 421:60–63

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dacke M., Nilsson DE, Warrant EJ, Blest AD, Land MF, O’Carroll DC (1999) Built-in polarizers form part of a compass organ in spiders. Nature 401:470–473

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dacke M, Nordström P, Sholtz CH (2003) Twilight orientation to polarised light in the crepuscular dung beetle Scarabaeus zambesianus. J Exp Biol 206:1535–1543

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Doujak FE (1985) Can a shore crab see a star? J Exp Biol 116:385–393

    Google Scholar 

  • von Frisch K (1967) The dance language and orientation of bees. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, Cambridge

  • Fukushi T (2001) Homing in wood ants, Formica japonica: use of the skyline panorama. J Exp Biol 204:2063–2072

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fukushi T, Wehner R (2004) Navigation in wood ants Formica japonica: context dependent use of landmarks. J Exp Biol 207:3431–3439

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Henschel JR (1990) The biology of Leucorchestris arenicola (Areneae: Heteropodidae), a burrowing spider of the Namib Desert. In: Seely MK (ed) Namib ecology: 25 years of Namib research. Transvaal museum monograph no. 7. Transvaal Museum, Pretoria, pp 115–127

  • Henschel JR (1994) Diet and foraging behaviour of huntsman spiders in the Namib dunes (Araneae: Heteropodidae). J Zool (Lond) 234:239–251

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Henschel JR (2002) Long distance wandering and mating by the dancing white lady spider (Leucorchestris arenicola) (Araneae, Sparassidae) across Namib dunes. J Arachnol 30:321–330

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hill DE (1979) Orientation by jumping spiders of the genus Phidippus (Arenae: Salticidae). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 5:301–322

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laughlin S, Blest AD, Stowe S (1980) The sensitivity of receptors in the posterior median eye of the nocturnal spider, Dinopis. J Comp Physiol A 141:53–65

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mittelstaedt H (1985) Analytical cybernetics of spider navigation. In: Barth FG (ed) Neurobiology of arachnids. Springer, Berlin Heidelberg New York, pp 298–316

    Google Scholar 

  • Müller M, Wehner R (1988) Path integration in desert ants, Cataglyphis fortis. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 85:5287–5290

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Müller M, Wehner R (1994) The hidden spiral: systematic search and path integration in desert ants, Cataglyphis fortis. J Comp Physiol A 175:525–530

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nørgaard T (2006) Nocturnal navigation in Leucorchestris arenicola (Araneae: Sparassidae). J Arachnol 33:533–540

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nørgaard T, Henschel JR, Wehner R (2003) Long-distance navigation in the wandering desert spider Leucorchestris arenicola: can the slope of the dune surface provide a compass cue? J Comp Physiol A 189:801–809

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nørgaard T, Henschel JR, Wehner R (2006a) The night-time temporal window of locomotor activity in the Namib Desert long-distance wandering spider, Leucorchestris arenicola. J Comp Physiol A 192:365–372

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nørgaard T, Henschel JR, Wehner R (2006b) Tracking the Namib Desert spider Leucorchestris arenicola—reading the story in the sand. Senckenb Biol 86:211–218

    Google Scholar 

  • Papke MD, Reichert SE, Schulz S (2001) An airborne female pheromone associated with male attraction and courtship in a desert spider. Anim Behav 61:877–886

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robinson MD, Seely MK (1980) Physical and biotic environments of the southern Namib dune ecosystem. J Arid Environ 3:183–203

    Google Scholar 

  • Rossel S, Wehner R (1986) Polarization vision in bees. Nature 323:128–131

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Santschi (1911) Observations et remarques critiques sur le mécanisme de l’orientation chez les fourmis. Rev Suisse Zool 19:305–338

    Google Scholar 

  • Seyfarth EA, Hergenröder R, Ebbes H, Barth FG (1982) Ideothetic orientation of a wandering spider: compensation of detours and estimates of goal distance. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 11:139–148

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tongiorgi P (1969) Evidence of a moon orientation in the wolf spider Arctosa variana C. L. Koch (Araneae, Lycosidae). Bull Mus Nat Hist Natur Paris 41:243–249

    Google Scholar 

  • Vollrath F (1986) Gravity as an orientation guide during web-construction in the orb spider Araneus diadematus (Araneae, Araneidae). J Comp Physiol A 159:275–280

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Warrant EJ (1999) Seeing better at night: life style, eye design and the optimum strategy of spatial and temporal summation. Vision Res 39:1611–1630

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Warrant EJ (2004) Vision in the dimmest habitats on earth. J Comp Physiol A 190:765–789

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R (1976) Polarized-light navigation by insects. Sci Am 235:106–115

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R (1992) Arthropods. In: Papi F (ed) Animal homing. Chapman & Hall, London, pp 45–144

    Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R (1994) The polarization-vision project: championing organismic biology. Fortschr Zool 39:103–143

    Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R (1997) The ant’s celestial compass system: spectral and polarization channels. In: Lehrer M (ed) Orientation and communication in arthropods. Birkhäuser Verlag, Basel, pp 145–185

    Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R (2003) Desert ant navigation: how miniature brains solve complex tasks. J Comp Physiol A 189:579–588

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R, Duelli P (1971) The spatial orientation of desert ants, Cataglyphis bicolour, before sunrise and after sunset. Experientia 27:1364–1366

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R, Michel B, Antonsen P (1996) Visual navigation in insects: coupling of egocentric and geocentric information. J Exp Biol 199:129–140

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R, Srinivasan MV (1981) Searching behaviour of desert ants, genus Cataglyphis (Formicidae, Hymenoptera). J Comp Physiol A 142:315–338

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R, Srinivasan MV (2003) Path integration in insects. In: Jeffery KJ (ed) The neurobiology of spatial behaviour. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 9–30

  • Wehner R, Wehner S (1986) Path integration in desert ants. Approaching a long-standing puzzle in insect navigation. Monit Zool Ital 20:309–331

    Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R, Wehner S (1990) Insect navigation: use of maps or Ariadne’s thread? Ethol Ecol Evol 2:27–48

    Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R, Gallizzi K, Frei C, Vesely M (2002) Calibration processes in the desert ant navigation: vector courses and systematic search. J Comp Physiol A 188:683–693

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wehner R, Boyer M, Loertscher F, Sommer S, Menzi U (2006) Ant navigation: one-way routes rather than maps. Curr Biol 16:75–79

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism and the Gobabeb Training & Research Centre for permission to work in the Namib-Naukluft Park and for the use of facilities. This work was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (grant no. 31-61844.00 to R.W.) and the Department of Zoology, University of Zürich.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland

    Thomas Nørgaard & Rüdiger Wehner

  2. Gobabeb Training and Research Centre, P.O. Box 953, Walvis Bay, Namibia

    Joh R. Henschel

Authors
  1. Thomas Nørgaard
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Joh R. Henschel
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Rüdiger Wehner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rüdiger Wehner.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Nørgaard, T., Henschel, J.R. & Wehner, R. Use of local cues in the night-time navigation of the wandering desert spider Leucorchestris arenicola (Araneae, Sparassidae). J Comp Physiol A 193, 217–222 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-006-0178-6

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-006-0178-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation