[ad_1]
"We found that rural spiders avoided light and loved to build their canvases in the dark," said Ana María Bastidas-Urrutia, a biologist at the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich and co-author of the book. study.
"The urban spiders scoffed at the place where they had built their canvases, the light did not seem to bother them."
TThe researchers, whose findings are published in the journal The Science of Nature, believe that behavioral change is an evolutionary change that is likely to be caused by the search for food.
Insects such as mites, whose spiders are prey, are often attracted by artificial lights, which also makes them an ideal place to create a canvas.
Because the spiders used in the study were collected before hatching, scientists are convinced that this behavior is due to genetic modifications because they would not have had the time to learn how to exploit the increased amount of prey found in clear areas.
The study focused on the spider Steatoda triangulosa – more commonly known as the false widow spider.
Commonly prevalent in southern Europe, the encroachment of the false widow on the UK has raised concerns in recent years, with children and animals suffering from painful bites being reported, and in some cases cases of schools that had to close after the discovery of infestations.
Similar to other spiders of the genus Steatoda, the false widow can be easily identified by her canvas which, unlike the pretty orb-shaped canvases of other species, has the shape of a entanglement seemingly formless, often found in the corners of unused rooms and attics. .
[ad_2]
Source link
