The effects of hunger on locomotory behaviour in two species of wolf spider (Araneae, Lycosidae).

We compared the influence of recent feeding history on locomotory behaviour in two species of wolf spiders, Hogna helluo (Walckenaer) and Pardosa milvina Hentz, in the laboratory. Both species are cursorial hunters. We maintained the spiders in the laboratory on satiation and stringent feeding regimes and measured their locomotory activity levels for 1 h using a digital activity recording device. We subjected H. helluo to either ad libitum feeding for 14 days or no food for 14 days. We subjected P. milvina to ad libitum feeding or fasting treatments for 7 and 14 days. We found that H. helluo showed a shift in locomotory activity depending on feeding regime, whereas P. milvina did not. Food-limited H. helluo travelled further than satiated H. helluo, and did so by moving more frequently. Pardosa milvina was in general much more active than H. helluo. We propose that P. milvina is an active forager compared with the sit-and-wait strategy of H. helluo. This difference in foraging strategy is correlated with differences in body size and habitat use. Copyright 1999 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.