Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Phenology of the Himalayan Wolf Spider, Pardosa flavisterna Caporiacco, 1935 (Araneae: Lycosidae) in the Agroecosystems of Kashmir, India

  • Research Article
  • Published:
Proceedings of the Zoological Society Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Phenology of the wolf spider, Pardosa flavisterna, was studied. This species is an abundant arthropod predator in the agroecosystems of Kashmir valley and is restricted to some parts of India and Pakistan only. The life cycle pattern was deduced via sampling done by manual searching, pitfall trapping in 24 different agricultural fields, and individuals reared under laboratory conditions. Males and females underwent seven moultings to mature and showed a mean carapace width (± SEM) of 2.594 mm (± 0.026) n = 17, and 2.470 mm (± 0.040) n = 14, respectively, at maturity. Investigation of the monthly catches and outcome of the measurement of their carapace width indicated an annual-biannual life cycle of P. flavisterna having stenochronous occurrence, reproducing in spring and summer. Females produce two egg sacs. Individuals of the first brood overwinter as subadults, while the second brood overwinters as juveniles. The first brood matured in the upcoming spring, while the second brood matured the next spring after growing throughout the year. The mean clutch size (± SEM) is 68.24 (± 4.57), n = 122, range = 41–103 eggs. Weather parameters had an impact on the number of catches, with temperature showing a positive correlation, and rainfall and humidity showing a negative relationship with the number of individuals caught. A minimum of two size classes were recorded throughout the year as a result of this life cycle pattern.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alderweireldt, M., and J.P. Maelfait. 1988. Life cycle, habitat choice and distribution of Pardosa amentata (Clerck, 1757) in Belgium (Araneae, Lycosidae). Bulletin De La Société Scientifique De Bretagne 59 (1): 7–16.

    Google Scholar 

  • Alford, D.V., ed. 2008. Biocontrol of oilseed rape pests. United States: John Wiley & Sons. New Jersey.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bizuet-Flores, M.Y., M.L. Jiménez-Jiménez, A. Zavala-Hurtado, and P. Corcuera. 2015. Diversity patterns of ground dwelling spiders (Arachnida: Araneae) in five prevailing plant communities of the Cuatro Ciénegas Basin, Coahuila. Mexico. Revista Mexicana De Biodiversidad 86 (1): 153163. https://doi.org/10.7550/rmb.45444.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bonte, D., and J. P. Maelfait. 2001. Life history, habitat use and dispersal of a dune wolf spider (Pardosa monticola (Clerck, 1757) Lycosidae, Araneae) in the Flemish coastal dunes (Belgium). Belgian Journal of Zoology 131(2): 145 - 158. http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-363607

  • Bowden, J.J., and C.M. Buddle. 2012. Life history of tundra-dwelling wolf spiders (Araneae: Lycosidae) from the Yukon Territory. Canada. Canadian Journal of Zoology 90 (6): 714–721. https://doi.org/10.1139/Z2012-038.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buddle, C.M., S. Higgins, and A.L. Rypstra. 2004. Ground-dwelling spider assemblages inhabiting riparian forests and hedgerows in an agricultural landscape. The American Midland Naturalist 151 (1): 15–26. https://doi.org/10.1674/0003-0031(2004)151[0015:GSAIRF]2.0.CO;2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buddle, C.M. 2002. Interactions among young stages of the wolf spiders Pardosa moesta and P.mackenziana (Araneae: Lycosidae). Oikos 96 (1): 130–136. https://doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0706.2002.960114.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buddle, C.M. 2000. Life history of Pardosa moesta and Pardosa mackenziana (Araneae, Lycosidae) in central Alberta Canada. The Journal of Arachnology 28 (3): 319–328. https://doi.org/10.1636/0161-8202(2000)028[0319:LHOPMA]2.0.CO;2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Caporiacco, L.D. 1935. Aracnidi dell’Himalaia e del Karakoram raccolti dalla Missione Italiana al Karakoram (1929–VII). Memorie Della Società Entomologica Italiana 13: 113–250.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clough, Y., A. Kruess, D. Kleijn, and T. Tscharntke. 2005. Spider diversity in cereal fields: Comparing factors at local, landscape and regional scales. Journal of Biogeography 32 (11): 2007–2014. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2699.2005.01367.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S., A.M. Van den Berg, R. Lyle, and C.R. Haddad. 2013. Current knowledge of spiders in South African agroecosystems (Arachnida, Araneae). Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 68 (1): 57–74. https://doi.org/10.1080/0035919X.2012.755136.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eubanks, M. D., and G. L. Miller. 1992. Life cycle and habitat preference of the facultatively arboreal wolf spider, Gladicosa pulchra (Araneae, Lycosidae). Journal of Arachnology 1: 157-164. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3705875

  • Fangwen, T. 2001. Study on biological characteristics and predation function of Pardosa astrigera, the predator of locust. Plant Protection Technology and Extension 7. n.p.

  • Hagstrum, D.W. 1971. Carapace width as a tool for evaluating the rate of development of spiders in the laboratory and the field. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 64 (4): 757–760. https://doi.org/10.1093/aesa/64.4.757.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Høye, T.T., J.C. Kresse, A.M. Koltz, and J.J. Bowden. 2020. Earlier springs enable High-Arctic wolf spiders to produce a second clutch. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 287 (1929): 20200982. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2020.0982.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Jakob, E.M., S.D. Marshall, and G.W. Uetz. 1996. Estimating fitness: A comparison of body condition indices. Oikos. https://doi.org/10.2307/3545585.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, T.C., and P.G. Parker. 2000. Costs and benefits of foraging associated with delayed dispersal in the spider Anelosimus studiosus (Araneae, Theridiidae). Journal of Arachnology 28 (1): 61–69. https://doi.org/10.1636/0161-8202(2000)028[0061:CABOFA]2.0.CO;2.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kishimoto-Yamada, K., and T. Itioka. 2015. How much have we learned about seasonality in tropical insect abundance since Wolda (1988)? Entomological Science 18 (4): 407–419. https://doi.org/10.1111/ens.12134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kreiter, N.A., and D.H. Wise. 2001. Prey availability limits fecundity and influences the movement pattern of female fishing spiders. Oecologia 127 (3): 417–424. https://doi.org/10.1007/s004420000607.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lensing, J.R., S. Todd, and D.H. Wise. 2005. The impact of altered precipitation on spatial stratification and activity-densities of springtails (Collembola) and spiders (Araneae). Ecological Entomology 30 (2): 194–200. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0307-6946.2005.00669.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Loru, L., A. Sassu, X. Fois, and R.A. Pantaleoni. 2010. Ethyl acetate: A possible alternative for anaesthetizing insects. Annales De La Société Entomologique De France 46 (3–4): 422–424. https://doi.org/10.1080/00379271.2010.10697677.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maloney, D., F. A. Drummond, and R. Alford. 2003. TB190: Spider predation in agroecosystems: Can spiders effectively control pest populations? Dissertation, University of Maine.

  • Marusik, Y. M., and F. Ballarin. 2011. Redescription of the Himalaian Pardosa flavisterna Caporiacco, 1935 (Aranei: Lycosidae) with notes of the Pardosa nebulosi spp. -group. Proceedings of the Zoological Institute RAS 315(1): 63 - 69.

  • Michalko, R., S. Pekár, and M.H. Entling. 2019. An updated perspective on spiders as generalist predators in biological control. Oecologia 189 (1): 21–36. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-018-4313-1.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, G. L., and P. R. Miller. 1987. Life cycle and courtship behavior of the burrowing wolf spider Geolycosa turricola (Treat) (Araneae, Lycosidae). Journal of Arachnology 1: 385 - 394. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3705854

  • Mineo, M.F., K. Del-Claro, and A.D. Brescovit. 2010. Seasonal variation of ground spiders in a Brazilian Savanna. Zoologia (curitiba). 27: 353–362. https://doi.org/10.1590/S1984-46702010000300006.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moring, J. B., and K. W. Stewart. 1992. Influence of sex and egg-case presence on predatory behavior of the wolf spider Pardosa valens Barnes (Araneae: Lycosidae). The Southwestern Naturalist 132–137. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3671661

  • Oberg, S. 2007. Diversity of spiders after spring sowing- influence of farming system and habitat type. Journal of Applied Entomology 131 (8): 524–553. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1439-0418.2007.01173x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oraze, M. J., A. A. Grigarick, and K. A. Smith. 1989. Population ecology of Pardosa ramulosa (Aranaea, Lycosidae) in flooded rice fields of northern California. Journal of Arachnology 1: 163 - 170. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3705624

  • Paquin, P., and N. Dupérré. 2001. On the distribution and phenology of Argyrodes fictilium (Araneae, Theridiidae) at its northern limit of North America. Journal of Arachnology. 29(2), 238–243. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3706102

  • Pickavance, J.R. 2001. Life-cycles of four species of Pardosa (Araneae, Lycosidae) from the island of Newfoundland Canada. Journal of Arachnology 29 (3): 367–377. https://doi.org/10.1636/0161-8202(2001)029[0367:LCOFSO]2.0.CO;2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Punzo, F., and C. Farmer. 2006. Life history and ecology of the wolf spider Pardosa sierra Banks (Araneae: Lycosidae) in southeastern Arizona. Southwest Naturalist 51(3): 310 - 319. https://www.jstor.org/stable/20424725

  • Rádai, Z. 2021. Cohort splitting from plastic bet-hedging: Insights from empirical and theoretical investigations in a wolf spider. Theoretical Ecology 14 (1): 9–21. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12080-020-00475-6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schmidt, M. H., I. Roschewitz, C. Thies, and T. Tscharntke. 2005. Differential effects of landscape and management on diversity and density of ground‐dwelling farmland spiders. Journal of Applied Ecology 42(2): 281 - 287. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3505721

  • Seyfulina, R.R. 2010. The spider assemblage (Arachnida, Aranei) in agroecosystems of the Kuban Plain: spp. composition, spatial distribution, and seasonal dynamics. Entomological Review 90 (4): 494–510. https://doi.org/10.1134/S001387381004010X.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Song, X., T. Yang, X. Xu and Y. Zhong. 2020. A checklist of spiders in tea plantations of China. Biodiversity data journal 8. Pensoft publishers. Sofia, Bulgaria.

  • Sunderland, K., and F. Samu. 2000. Effects of agricultural diversification on the abundance, distribution, and pest control potential of spiders: A review. Entomologia Experimentalis Et Applicata 95 (1): 1–3. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1570-7458.2000.00635.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tretzel, E. 1954. Reife-und Fortpflanzungszeit bei Spinnen. Zeitschrift für Morphologie und Ökologie der Tiere 42(6/7), 634–691. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43261884

  • Villanueva-Bonilla, G.A., S. Safuan-Naide, and J. Vasconcellos-Neto. 2018. Population dynamics and phenology of two congeneric and sympatric lynx spiders Peucetia rubrolineata Keyserling, 1877 and Peucetia flava Keyserling, 1877 (Oxyopidae). Journal of Natural History 52 (5–6): 361–376. https://doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2018.1433339.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Viera, C., and S. Ghione. 2003. Sexual behavior and ritualised fight of adult males of a social spider, Anelosimus studiosus (Araneae, Theridiidae). In Proceedings XXVIII International Ethological Conference, Florianópolis, Brasil, 218–219.

  • Viera, C., S. Ghione, and F.G. Costa. 2006. Regurgitation among penultimate juveniles in the subsocial spider Anelosimus cf. studiosus (Theridiidae): are males favored? Journal of Arachnology 258–260. https://www.jstor.org/stable/4489069

  • Wang, J., L. Zhao, Y. Shi, M. Tang, and Z. Wang. 2017. Effect of temperature on growth and development of Pardosa pseudoannulata. Chinese Journal of Biological Control 33 (5): 597–603.

    Google Scholar 

  • World Spider Catalog. 2020 Version 21.5. Natural History Museum Bern. http://wsc.nmbe.ch.

  • Yang, H., Y. Peng, J. Tian, J. Wang, B. Wei, C. Xie, and Z. Wang. 2018. Rice field spiders in China: A review of the literature. Journal of Economic Entomology 111 (1): 53–64. https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/tox319.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The author is grateful to Dr. Sameera Qayoom, Agromet Field Unit, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology- Kashmir for providing the Meteorological Data.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Biological Science, Department of Zoology, Entomology Research Laboratory, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir, 190006, India

    Shazia Riyaz Shah & Abdul Ahad Buhroo

Authors
  1. Shazia Riyaz Shah
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Abdul Ahad Buhroo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

Both the authors conceived and designed the study. Shazia Riyaz Shah conducted the experiment, analyzed the data and wrote the paper. Both the authors contributed to manuscript revision and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shazia Riyaz Shah.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that there is no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Shah, S.R., Buhroo, A.A. Phenology of the Himalayan Wolf Spider, Pardosa flavisterna Caporiacco, 1935 (Araneae: Lycosidae) in the Agroecosystems of Kashmir, India . Proc Zool Soc 75, 292–300 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12595-022-00435-4

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12595-022-00435-4

Keywords

Search

Navigation