Prey capture behavior in three Neotropical armored harvestmen (Arachnida, Opiliones)

Costa, Thaiany Miranda; Silva, Norton F. S.; Willemart, Rodrigo Hirata

doi:10.1007/s10164-016-0464-x

Cited by 7 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 38 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…In the Holarctic region, Lacinius dentiger (Koch, 1847) (Phalangiidae) accepted apples and pears (Mitov 1988), and several species of neopilionids also accepted apples (Table 2). In the Neotropical region, the gonyleptids Heteromitobates discolor (Sørensen, 1884) and Mischonyx squalidus Bertkau, 1880 accepted banana (Costa et al 2016;Segovia et al 2019;Dias et al 2020), Opisthoplatus prospicuus (Holmberg, 1876) accepted cucumber (Fernandes et al 2017), Discocyrtanus pertenuis (Mello-Leitão, 1935) accepted pear (Fig. S1A), and Acanthopachylus aculeatus (Kirby, 1819) and Promitobates ornatus (Mello-Leitão, 1922) accepted papaya (Capocasale & Bruno-Trezza 1964;Willemart 2001).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fungus and fruit consumption by harvestmen and spiders (Opiliones, Araneae): the vegetarian side of two predominantly predaceous arachnid groups

Nyffeler

Machado

Hartmann

et al. 2023

The Journal of Arachnology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In this review, we report on harvestmen and spiders feeding on fungi, fruits, and seeds. Fungivory in harvestmen is widespread, with most reports referring to tropical species in the family Sclerosomatidae, which consume mainly small forest mushrooms (families Marasmiaceae and Mycenaceae). In contrast, consumption of fungal material by spiders apparently occurs only if airborne spores trapped in the viscid threads of orb-webs (e.g., Araneidae and Tetragnathidae) are ingested along with old webs prior to the construction of new webs. Consumption of fruit pulp by harvestmen is also widespread, with several records of Leiobunum spp. (Sclerosomatidae) feeding on Rubus spp. berries and other lipid-poor fruits in the Holarctic region. In Neotropical forests, harvestmen in the families Cosmetidae and Gonyleptidae feed on lipidpoor pulp of fallen fruits. Among spiders, we document several cases of synanthropic species opportunistically feeding on fruit waste (e.g., pieces of banana, papaya, watermelon, or orange pulp) inside houses or disposed in yards. Only one case of a spider feeding on a wild fruit in the field was found in our search. Finally, we report several cases of harvestmen and spiders feeding on elaiosomes or arils (i.e., lipid-rich seed appendages). In conclusion, harvestmen consume mushrooms, fruit pulp, seeds, and seed appendages more frequently than spiders probably because they are ''solid food feeders'', which means they can ingest solid tissues by biting off small pieces. In turn, spiders are ''fluid feeders'' and feed on vegetable matter most frequently in the form of fluids (e.g., nectar, stigmatic exudate, plant sap, and honey dew), rather than fungal or plant tissues.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fungus and fruit consumption by harvestmen and spiders (Opiliones, Araneae): the vegetarian side of two predominantly predaceous arachnid groups

Nyffeler

Machado

Hartmann

et al. 2023

The Journal of Arachnology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…We have made available a link for some of the behaviors presented herein at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8XEuBcd qaw&feature=youtu.be Table 2 Behavioral repertoire of the defensive behavior of the harvestman Mischonyx cuspidatus when attacked by the flatworm Cephaloflexa bergi. Some categories follow Segovia et al (2015c) and (Costa, Silva & Willemart, 2016) Category Definition…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sticky flatworms (Platyhelminthes) kill armored harvestmen (Arachnida, Opiliones) but are not immune to the prey′s weapons

2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Asking how prey respond to different species of predators helps understanding the repertoire of defenses prey exhibit. This approach may also add to the knowledge on the efficiency of prey′s defenses against each predator and allows studying the costs of being attacked by different predators. Here, we studied interactions between the predatory terrestrial flatworm Cephaloflexa bergi and the harvestman Mischonyx cuspidatus. The flatworm quickly strikes at the prey′s leg with its head, then crawls towards the prey′s body releasing mucus and thus subdues the harvestman. Harvestmen may release defensive chemicals and pinch the flatworm with spines on legs IV, sometimes cutting the predator in two pieces. We also experimentally assessed the benefits of harvestmen′ defense and the cost of being attacked by testing whether the chemical defense of the harvestmen is efficient against the flatworm and whether the harvestmen that had survived a flatworm attack would have their locomotion abilities hampered. Both hypotheses were corroborated. Previous studies on interactions between harvestmen and other predators, such as spiders and scorpions, had shown that defensive secretions and mechanical retaliation were seldom used and were often ineffective. Our results point to the exact opposite and suggest that different predators exert different selective pressures culminating in the array of defenses exhibited by the prey.

show abstract

“…Em opiliões, há evidências do uso do olfato a curta distância na detecção de presa Costa et al, 2016a). Estes animais, portanto, se prestam para a investigação do possível efeito de jejum em comportamento de forrageio no que diz respeito especificamente à olfação.…”

Section: Introductionunclassified

O uso do olfato nos opiliões Neosadocus maximus e Mischonyx cuspidatus (Arachnida: Opiliones: Laniatores)

Dias¹

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Prey capture behavior in three Neotropical armored harvestmen (Arachnida, Opiliones)

Cited by 7 publications

References 38 publications

Fungus and fruit consumption by harvestmen and spiders (Opiliones, Araneae): the vegetarian side of two predominantly predaceous arachnid groups

Fungus and fruit consumption by harvestmen and spiders (Opiliones, Araneae): the vegetarian side of two predominantly predaceous arachnid groups

Sticky flatworms (Platyhelminthes) kill armored harvestmen (Arachnida, Opiliones) but are not immune to the prey′s weapons

O uso do olfato nos opiliões Neosadocus maximus e Mischonyx cuspidatus (Arachnida: Opiliones: Laniatores)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About