20th International Congress of Arachnology

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104 DENVER MUSEUM OF NATURE & SCIENCE REPORTS | No. 3, July 2, 2016
Cushing
Simon, 1908 is available. We also sequenced numerous
specimens of Proshermacha and 20 distinct genetic lin-
eages were detected. These lineages mostly correspond with
morphological differences, and we therefore interpret them
as distinct species. Their disjunct distributions display obvious
patterning across southern Australia, ranging from the high
rainfall south coast in to the transitional drier regions.
Keywords: Nemesiidae; southern Australia; molecular;
morphology; species distribution; rainfall patterns
Student - poster presentation
Quantifying non-consumptive effects of
arthropod predators on agroecosystem pests
*Domonique Hatton, Susan Riechert
569 Dabney Hall, University of Tennessee, Knoxville,
TN 37996-1610, USA
Fear Ecology is an understudied subset of predator-prey
population dynamics. We have yet to quantitatively assess
the indirect and non-consumptive effects predators have
on their prey. Diverse assemblages of spiders can act as
buffers that limit the initial exponential growth of given
prey populations in agroecosystems. As prey mitigate preda-
tion risk through the manifestation of adaptive traits, such
as predator avoidance behaviors, there will be negative costs
associated with these traits. Non-consumptive effects involve
the assumption that prey cease foraging as a mechanism to
avoid predators. Active avoidance minimally results in lost
foraging time, can induce physiological stress, and may have
significant effects on the generation turnover time of crop
pests. I am looking at prey response to simulated, olfactory,
tactile, and visual cues. Differences in prey feeding activity
and development will tell provide some information as to the
non-consumptive effects foraging spiders have on their prey.
Oral presentation
Amblypygids as a model for exploring links
between sensory systems and behavior
Eileen A. Hebets1 , Verner P. Bingman2 , Wulfila Gronenberg3 ,
Daniel D. Wiegmann4
1School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska,
Lincoln, NE 68588, USA; 2Department of Psychology,
Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH
43403, USA; 3Department of Neuroscience, University
of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA; 4Department of
Biological sciences, Bowling Green State University,
Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA
Our working knowledge of the relationship between brain
structures, sensory integration, and complex behavior is
surprisingly limited. Navigation, as a behavioral context,
is particularly well-suited for providing insights into these
relationships as it is arguably a tangible manifestation of
higher cognitive ability. Traditional studies of navigation,
however, have focused predominantly on a small subset of
taxa that inhabit rather simple environments. Modernizing
navigation research requires the identification of model
species that display successful navigation in a structurally
complex environment, possess higher-order processing
centers putatively capable of multisensory processing, and
are amenable to sophisticated behavioral and neural assays.
We propose that amblypygids offer just such a system.
Recent field research using the amblypygid Phrynus
pseudoparvulus has documented successful homing
behavior of displaced individuals in heterogeneous trop-
ical rainforest understories. Manipulations of the sensory
systems of displaced individuals suggest a reliance on olfac-
tory cues and putative visual cues. Earlier work additionally
provided evidence that amblypygids are capable of learning
tactile cues, raising the possibility of mechanoreception
being important in nocturnal navigation as well. This talk
will summarize the current state of knowledge regarding
learning, memory, and navigation in amblypygids and will
discuss ongoing research aimed at linking sensory systems
to complex behavior in this understudied arachnid group.
Keywords: Amblypygid, navigation, sensory ecology,
multimodal, learning
Oral presentation
Cryptic elevational zonation in the Aliaty-
pus janus complex (Antrodiaetidae) from
montane California
Marshal Hedin1 , James Starrett1, Cheryl Hayashi2