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Ortega-Escobar J, Hebets EA, Bingman VP, Wiegmann DD, Gaffin DD. Comparative biology of spatial navigation in three arachnid orders (Amblypygi, Araneae, and Scorpiones). J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2023:10.1007/s00359-023-01612-2. [PMID: 36781447 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-023-01612-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2022] [Revised: 01/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2023]
Abstract
From both comparative biology and translational research perspectives, there is escalating interest in understanding how animals navigate their environments. Considerable work is being directed towards understanding the sensory transduction and neural processing of environmental stimuli that guide animals to, for example, food and shelter. While much has been learned about the spatial orientation behavior, sensory cues, and neurophysiology of champion navigators such as bees and ants, many other, often overlooked animal species possess extraordinary sensory and spatial capabilities that can broaden our understanding of the behavioral and neural mechanisms of animal navigation. For example, arachnids are predators that often return to retreats after hunting excursions. Many of these arachnid central-place foragers are large and highly conducive to scientific investigation. In this review we highlight research on three orders within the Class Arachnida: Amblypygi (whip spiders), Araneae (spiders), and Scorpiones (scorpions). For each, we describe (I) their natural history and spatial navigation, (II) how they sense the world, (III) what information they use to navigate, and (IV) how they process information for navigation. We discuss similarities and differences among the groups and highlight potential avenues for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Eileen A Hebets
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, 68588, USA
| | - Verner P Bingman
- Department of Psychology and J. P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, 43403, USA
| | - Daniel D Wiegmann
- Department of Biological Sciences and J. P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, 43403, USA
| | - Douglas D Gaffin
- Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, 73019, USA
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Lehmann KDS, Shogren FG, Fallick M, Watts JC, Schoenberg D, Wiegmann DD, Bingman VP, Hebets EA. Exploring Higher-Order Conceptual Learning in an Arthropod with a Large Multisensory Processing Center. INSECTS 2022; 13:insects13010081. [PMID: 35055924 PMCID: PMC8780652 DOI: 10.3390/insects13010081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2021] [Revised: 12/30/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary It is difficult to measure animal intelligence because the definition of ‘intelligence’ varies, and many animals are good at specific tasks used to measure intelligence or cognition. To address this, scientists often look for evidence of common cognitive abilities. One such ability, the ability to learn concepts, is thought to be rare in animals, especially invertebrates. Concepts include the ideas of ‘same’ and ‘different’. These concepts can be applied to anything in the environment while also being independent of those objects and can help animals understand and survive their environment. Amblypygids, a relative of spiders, live in tropical and subtropical areas, are very good learners, and have a large, complex brain region known to process information from multiple senses. We tested whether amblypygids could learn the concept of ‘same’ by training them to move toward a stimulus that matched with an initial stimulus. We also trained some individuals to learn the concept ‘different’ by training them to move toward a non-matching stimulus. When we used new stimuli, the amblypygids did not move toward the correct stimulus significantly more often than the incorrect stimulus, suggesting either they are unable to learn these higher-order concepts or our experimental design failed to elicit that ability. Abstract Comparative cognition aims to understand the evolutionary history and current function of cognitive abilities in a variety of species with diverse natural histories. One characteristic often attributed to higher cognitive abilities is higher-order conceptual learning, such as the ability to learn concepts independent of stimuli—e.g., ‘same’ or ‘different’. Conceptual learning has been documented in honeybees and a number of vertebrates. Amblypygids, nocturnal enigmatic arachnids, are good candidates for higher-order learning because they are excellent associational learners, exceptional navigators, and they have large, highly folded mushroom bodies, which are brain regions known to be involved in learning and memory in insects. In Experiment 1, we investigate if the amblypygid Phrynus marginimaculatus can learn the concept of same with a delayed odor matching task. In Experiment 2, we test if Paraphrynus laevifrons can learn same/different with delayed tactile matching and nonmatching tasks before testing if they can transfer this learning to a novel cross-modal odor stimulus. Our data provide no evidence of conceptual learning in amblypygids, but more solid conclusions will require the use of alternative experimental designs to ensure our negative results are not simply a consequence of the designs we employed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kenna D. S. Lehmann
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA; (K.D.S.L.); (F.G.S.); (M.F.); (D.S.)
| | - Fiona G. Shogren
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA; (K.D.S.L.); (F.G.S.); (M.F.); (D.S.)
| | - Mariah Fallick
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA; (K.D.S.L.); (F.G.S.); (M.F.); (D.S.)
| | - James Colton Watts
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA;
| | - Daniel Schoenberg
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA; (K.D.S.L.); (F.G.S.); (M.F.); (D.S.)
| | - Daniel D. Wiegmann
- Department of Biological Sciences, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA;
- J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA;
| | - Verner P. Bingman
- J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA;
- Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403, USA
| | - Eileen A. Hebets
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA; (K.D.S.L.); (F.G.S.); (M.F.); (D.S.)
- Correspondence:
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Flanigan KAS, Wiegmann DD, Casto P, Coppola VJ, Flesher NR, Hebets EA, Bingman VP. Visual control of refuge recognition in the whip spider Phrynus marginemaculatus. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2021; 207:729-737. [PMID: 34591165 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-021-01509-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2021] [Revised: 09/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/09/2021] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Amblypygids, or whip spiders, are nocturnally active arachnids which live in structurally complex environments. Whip spiders are excellent navigators that can re-locate a home refuge without relying on visual input. Therefore, an open question is whether visual input can control any aspect of whip spider spatial behavior. In the current study, Phrynus marginemaculatus were trained to locate an escape refuge by discriminating between differently oriented black and white stripes placed either on the walls of a testing arena (frontal discrimination) or on the ceiling of the same testing arena (overhead discrimination). Regardless of the placement of the visual stimuli, the whip spiders were successful in learning the location of the escape refuge. In a follow-up study of the overhead discrimination, occluding the median eyes was found to disrupt the ability of the whip spiders to locate the shelter. The data support the conclusion that whip spiders can rely on vision to learn and recognize an escape shelter. We suggest that visual inputs to the brain's mushroom bodies enable this ability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaylyn A S Flanigan
- Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA. .,J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA.
| | - Daniel D Wiegmann
- J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA.,Department of Biological Sciences, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA
| | - Patrick Casto
- J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA.,Department of Biological Sciences, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA
| | - Vincent J Coppola
- Department of Behavioral Sciences, University of Findlay, Findlay, OH, USA
| | - Natasha R Flesher
- Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA.,J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA
| | - Eileen A Hebets
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE, USA
| | - Verner P Bingman
- Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA.,J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA
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Homing in the arachnid taxa Araneae and Amblypygi. Anim Cogn 2020; 23:1189-1204. [PMID: 32894371 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-020-01424-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2019] [Revised: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/28/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Adequate homing is essential for the survival of any animal when it leaves its home to find prey or a mate. There are several strategies by which homing can be carried out: (a) retrace the outbound path; (b) use a 'cognitive map'; or (c) use path integration (PI). Here, I review the state of the art of research on spiders (Araneae) and whip spiders (Amblypygi) homing behaviour. The main strategy described in the literature as being used by these arachnids is PI. Behavioural and neural substrates of PI are described in a small group of spider families (Agelenidae, Lycosidae, Gnaphosidae, Ctenidae and Theraphosidae) and a whip spider family (Phrynidae). In spiders, the cues used to detect the position of the animal relative to its home are the position of the sun, polarized light patterns, web elasticity and landmarks. In whip spiders, the cues used are olfactory, tactile and, with a more minor role, visual. The use of a magnetic field in whip spiders has been rejected both with field and laboratory studies. Concerning the distance walked in PI, the possibility of using optic flow and idiothetic information in spiders is considered. The studies about outbound and inbound paths in whip spiders seem to suggest they do not follow the PI rules. As a conclusion, these arachnids' navigation relies on multimodal cues. We have detailed knowledge about the sensory origin (visual, olfactory, mechanosensory receptors) of neural information, but we are far from knowing the central neural structures where sensory information is integrated.
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McArthur IW, de Miranda GS, Seiter M, Chapin KJ. Global patterns of sexual dimorphism in Amblypygi. ZOOL ANZ 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jcz.2018.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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