Memory of captured prey in three web spiders (Araneae: Araneidae, Linyphiidae, Tetragnathidae)

Abstract

We gave three web spiders, Argiope argentata (Araneidae), Nephila clavipes (Tetragnathidae) and Neriene peltata (Linyphiidae), large and small prey which we then removed from the spiders’ webs. Following prey removal the spiders searched by walking around the web and pulling on its threads for several minutes, stopping when allowed to find the prey. Spiders that captured larger prey searched for longer. Searching behaviour was different from the spiders’ responses to disturbance and did not appear to be elicited by proximal cues. Instead, the spiders formed memories of captured prey that included details about prey size and freshness.