20th International Congress of Arachnology

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DENVER MUSEUM OF NATURE & SCIENCE REPORTS | No. 3, July 2, 2016
specified sufficiently, and the evolutionary pattern of the
mimic-model relationship is unclear. To reveal probable
evolutionary pattern of the mimic-model relationship
in the genus Myrmarachne, we established the mimicry
relationship between Myrmarachne species and ants
on the basis of the size, shape, coloration, geographi-
cal distribution and natural history information. The
phylogeny of Myrmarachne species was also inferred by
molecular analysis of mitochondrial CO1 region. Based
on available data obtained until now, we will discuss the
evolution of the mimic-model relationship.
Keywords: myrmecomorphy, Batesian mimicry, taxonomy,
Southeast Asia
Poster presentation
Assembly and annotation of the mito-
chondrial genome of the striped scorpion,
Centruroides vittatus
Tsunemi Yamashita1, Douglas Rhoads2 , Jeff Pummill3
1Department of Biological Sciences, Arkansas
Tech University, Russellville, AR 72801, USA;
2Department of Biological Sciences, University of
Arkansas-Fayetteville, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA;
3High Performance Computing Center, University of
Arkansas-Fayetteville, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA
We have assembled a complete mitochondrial genome
for the striped scorpion, Centruroides vittatus, from
Illumina miSeq data. The C. vittatus mtDNA genome
matches the published C. limpitus mtDNA genome
(81.6%) with a similar genome size (14.6 kb) and the
same order of the 13 protein coding genes. The A + T
content of the C. vitttatus mtDNA assembly is also
similar to C. limpidus (68.1% to 64.46%, respectively).
Most of the nucleotide variation between the C. vittatus
and C. limpidus mtDNA genome occurs in the putative
noncoding regions. Availability of multiple complete
mitochondrial genomes will advance molecular phylo-
genetic and biogeographical investigations.
Keywords: scorpion, mitochondrial genome, genomics,
mitochondrion
Oral presentation
Maternal feeding and webs influence
dispersal in the colonial orb-weaver,
Cyrtophora citricola
Eric C. Yip1,2, Yael Lubin2
1Department of Entomology, Penn State University,
University Park, PA, USA; 2Mitrani Department of
Desert Ecology, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert
Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev,
Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
Although colonial spiders are thought to have paraso-
cial, rather than subsocial, origins, colonies may grow
through the retention of juveniles, and the genetic struc-
ture of colonies remains unknown for most species. We
examined the role of natal philopatry in the formation,
growth, and decline of Cyrtophora citricola colonies in a
semi-natural setting. I placed gravid females on high and
low diets onto potted trees in a net house and examined
their webs daily for hatching, juvenile web building, and
migration among trees. About half of spiderlings from
the first clutch built their webs within the support silk of
their mother’s web, and they were less likely to disperse
if the mother had been on the high feeding regime and
if her web was larger. These effects held only for the first
cohort of hatchlings. Later cohorts dispersed at greater
rates, and neither maternal feeding nor web size affected
the probability of dispersal. However, the total number of
offspring staying in the colony remained correlated with
web size, suggesting that spiderlings prefer to build webs
within the silken framework of their mother’s web, but
that her web can become saturated with juvenile webs
and thereby force later hatchlings to disperse.
Keywords: colonial, dispersal, foraging, migration, silk,
social, web
Poster presentation
Cuticular compounds in a subsocial spider
with kin recognition
Eric Yip
Department of Entomology, Penn State University,
University Park, PA 16802, USA;
20th International Congress of Arachnology