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Female-biased sexual size dimorphism is common in arthropods, apparently driven by fecundity selection in females. Selective pressures that limit growth are less often considered. One factor that researchers have rarely considered is the possible role of energetic limits on growth. The orb weaving spider Nephila clavipes (Linnaeus 1767) is extremely sexually size dimorphic. Males are “normal” sized spiders and females are up to ten times longer, having passed through several additional juvenile instars. This extreme size dimorphism presents the opportunity to test for intrinsic energetic costs of gigantism. Prior studies have shown that males successfully reach maturity on a range of diets, while female dietary requirements increase rapidly with increasing size. We here examine the effects of variation in food availability on juvenile female development by randomly assigning spiderlings from six different families (from six distinct populations) to quantitatively varying but qualitatively identical diets. Based upon field observations, we expected that dietary restrictions would have the greatest effect on duration of instars, particularly later instars, and on instar number (because longer total development would lead to curtailment of growth at an earlier stage), with relatively little effect on growth per molt. Because the diets ranged from higher than mean intake observed in the field to well below mean intake, we expected females to mature at a wide range of instars (and sizes). Our results support the functional relationship among food intake, instar duration, and fixed growth per molt (although growth per molt was less canalized than suggested by field observations). However, we observed no variation in number of instars, and we suggest that these data provide additional support for the importance of rare, large prey in the diets of web-building spiders.

Developmental response to low diets by giant Nephila clavipes females (Araneae: Nephilidae)