AWAKEN BEAUTIES: MATING QUIESCENCE IN ARACHNID FEMALES

CARGNELUTTI, F; BOLLATTI, F.; IZQUIERDO, M. A.; ABREGÚ, D.; OVIEDO-DIEGO, M.; VRECH, DAVID; OLIVERO, P.; CALBACHO-ROSA, L; SIMIAN, C.; PALEN-PIETRI, R.; MATTONI, C.; ALFREDO V. PERETTI

Montevideo

Congreso; XXII International Congress of Arachnology; 2023

International Society of Arachnology/Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable

Although strongly criticized during the 90s, male bias is still common in sexual selection studies. Arachnids are not an exception, with most studies ignoring female behavior or even reporting that it is lacking during mating interactions. An example is the female paralysis or quiescence that occurs during or immediately following copulation in some species of spiders and other arachnids. In this review, we compile hypotheses regarding the selective advantages of female quiescence and the published information on female quiescence in all orders of Arachnida, and show that it mainly occurs in Araneae, Scorpiones, and Solifugae. We then propose a new terminology and evaluate evidence that male behavior triggers female quiescence, in particular in relation to mate choice or communication during copulation (both of which imply an active female role). We also evaluate whether the hypotheses formulated for some groups can be applied to others and suggest possible contexts that may have favored female quiescence in arachnids. We encourage new researchers to report and describe this female behavior in more detail.