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Volumetric measurements do not demonstrate that the spider brain “central body” has a special role in web building
Author(s) -
Weltzien Peter,
Barth Friedrich G.
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
journal of morphology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.652
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1097-4687
pISSN - 0362-2525
DOI - 10.1002/jmor.1052080104
Subject(s) - spider , biology , jumping spider , neuropil , anatomy , orb (optics) , zoology , ecology , central nervous system , neuroscience , computer science , artificial intelligence , image (mathematics)
The results of volumetric measurements led Hanström ('28) to suggest that specialized neuropil in the brain, the so‐called central body ( CB ), may be of particular importance in the nervous control of web building behavior in spiders. We compared the volumes of the various brain regions in four spider species clearly differing in lifestyle and web building behavior: an orb weaver ( Nephila clavipes ), a wandering spider ( Cupiennius salei ), a jumping spider ( Phidippus regius ), and a bird spider ( Ephebopus sp. ). Our results obtained in adult animals as well as our observations on the postembryonic development of the brain do not support Hanström's hypothesis. The relative share of the CB in the brain is very similar in all four species (ca. 3.1 to 5.1%). The differentiation of the CB into a clearly demarcated two‐lobed structure does not coincide with the onset of web building behavior in Nephila . The CB of both Nephila and Cupiennius is already clearly recognizable in spiderlings which have not even left the egg sac.