Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- How this book came about
- 1 Introduction: spider biology
- 2 Flexibility in the foraging strategies of spiders
- 3 Spider webs: evolution, diversity and plasticity
- 4 Flexible use of anti-predator defences
- 5 Communication
- 6 Deceptive signals in spiders
- 7 Mating behaviour and sexual selection
- 8 Group living in spiders: cooperative breeding and coloniality
- 9 Plasticity, learning and cognition
- 10 Kleptoparasitic spiders of the subfamily Argyrodinae: a special case of behavioural plasticity
- Index
- Plate section
- References
9 - Plasticity, learning and cognition
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- How this book came about
- 1 Introduction: spider biology
- 2 Flexibility in the foraging strategies of spiders
- 3 Spider webs: evolution, diversity and plasticity
- 4 Flexible use of anti-predator defences
- 5 Communication
- 6 Deceptive signals in spiders
- 7 Mating behaviour and sexual selection
- 8 Group living in spiders: cooperative breeding and coloniality
- 9 Plasticity, learning and cognition
- 10 Kleptoparasitic spiders of the subfamily Argyrodinae: a special case of behavioural plasticity
- Index
- Plate section
- References
Summary
As is becoming increasingly clear, spiders are not entirely instinct driven and inflexible in their behaviour. Here we review evidence for behavioural plasticity, learning and other cognitive processes such as attentional priming and memory. We first examine these attributes in several natural contexts: predation, interactions with conspecifics and potential predators, and spatial navigation. Next we examine two somewhat more artificial experimental approaches, heat aversion and rearing in enriched versus impoverished environments. We briefly describe the neurobiological underpinnings of these behaviours. Finally, we point to areas where our knowledge gaps are greatest, and we offer advice for researchers beginning their own studies of spider learning.
Overview
The history of the study of spider learning parallels that of insect learning, but lags well behind. At the start of the twentieth century, the general view was that insect learning was generally guided by instinct, but a steady accumulation of data has transformed our view of the importance of learning in their daily lives (reviewed in Dukas, 2008). In spite of their tiny brains, insects are capable of learning a multitude of tasks related to foraging, anti-predatory behaviour, aggression, social interactions, courtship and mate choice (Dukas, 2008). The study of spider behaviour is undergoing a similar transformation. Beginning over a century ago, researchers have periodically delved into the question of whether spider behaviour is primarily instinctual or can be modified with experience.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Spider BehaviourFlexibility and Versatility, pp. 307 - 347Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2011
References
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