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Repeatability of dispersal behaviour in a common dwarf spider: evidence for different mechanisms behind short‐ and long‐distance dispersal
Author(s) -
BONTE DRIES,
CLERCQ NELE DE,
ZWERTVAEGHER INGRID,
LENS LUC
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
ecological entomology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.865
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1365-2311
pISSN - 0307-6946
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2311.2008.01070.x
Subject(s) - biological dispersal , ballooning , biology , wolf spider , trait , repeatability , mating , heritability , ecology , zoology , spider , evolutionary biology , statistics , demography , population , physics , plasma , mathematics , quantum mechanics , sociology , computer science , tokamak , programming language
1. The response of dispersal towards evolution largely depends on its heritability for which upper limits are determined by the trait’s repeatability. 2. In the Linyphiid spider E. atra , we were able to separate long‐ and short‐distance dispersal behaviours (respectively ballooning and rappelling) under laboratory conditions. By performing repeated behavioural trials for females, we show that average dispersal trait values decrease with increasing testing days. By comparing mated and unmated individuals during two periods (before and after mating for the mated group, and the same two periods for the unmated group), we show that mating has no effect on the mean displayed dispersal behaviour or its within‐individual variation. Repeatabilities were high and consistent for ballooning motivation, but not for rappelling. 3. Ballooning motivation can be regarded as highly individual‐specific behaviour, while general pre‐dispersal and rappelling behaviours showed more individual variation. Such difference in repeatability between long‐ and short‐distance dispersal suggests that short‐ and long‐distance dispersal events are triggered by different ecological and evolutionary mechanisms.