Choosing courtship over caution: male jumping spiders delay anti-predator responses

Predation risk imposes fundamental trade-offs between survival and reproduction, often leading to sex- and age-specific differences in anti-predator behaviour. We investigated these trade-offs in the jumping spider Saitis barbipes, a species in which cryptic females and juveniles contrast with conspicuously coloured males that engage in courtship displays. Using high-quality in-focus and blurred predator images, we tested first behavioural responses and reaction distances of adult males, adult females, and juveniles. While all groups reliably recognised predator cues, adult males consistently approached stimuli more closely before showing anti-predator behaviour and frequently responded with courtship rather than defensive behaviours. In contrast, females and juveniles more often employed passive strategies such as freezing. Stimulus clarity had no effect on the type of response, whereas distance strongly influenced behavioural responses. These results indicate that predator recognition is innate, but response thresholds are context-dependent and shaped by sex, age, and reproductive role. Conspicuous adult males appear to suppress or delay anti-predator responses in favour of courtship, highlighting an evolutionary trade-off between reproductive effort and survival.