Comparing adult defensive behavior with mating status in three species of false widow spiders

Among a myriad of important traits exhibited by organisms that affect fitness are those associated with defense against natural enemies such as predators. These defenses are often broadly categorized as 'primary' and 'secondary'. The former describes a wide range of physical and behavioral traits and ecological ploys that create 'enemy-free space' for an organism, whereas the latter describes traits and strategies that are employed when contact with an enemy is unavoidable. Spiders, as both prey and predators, their repertoire of behaviors may include both defensive and offensive tactics when confronted with threats. Here, we compared secondary defensive behavior in three closely related species of spiders, the false black widow, Steatoda grossa, the Mediterranean false widow, S. paykulliana and the noble false widow, S. nobilis when confronted with different artificial stimuli. The size hierarchy of adult females of the three species is S. grossa