The Larva that Cried Wolf (Spider)

By Michael on February 24, 2010 2:23 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
We all know the tale of the boy that cried wolf; it was told to me by my parents the first time I faked a stomach ache to avoid a test at school. Well, in a recent paper by Jonathan Storm and Steven Lima, it seems that cricket moms-to-be are "telling" their offspring the ways to avoid predation by wolf spiders. Moms who are exposed to non-deadly attacks from spiders have offspring that are born avoiding spider silk, feces and stay hidden longer than offspring from cricket moms not exposed to any such non-lethal spider attacks. Although a mechanism for this transgenerational informational exchange is unclear, the authors believe it must be hormonally controlled - no chirping necessary.

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This page contains a single entry by Michael published on February 24, 2010 2:23 PM.

A caterpillar's gonads to save humanity? was the previous entry in this blog.

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About "Bugs in the News"

I'm naturalist and teacher Michael McAloon. I have been studying invertebrates (spineless animals) for a number of years now and I specialize in mites and insects. My studies have brought me to remote forests in India and China, as well as some not-so-remote cities in Europe  and elsewhere around the world. I have trapped, netted, collected, preserved, cataloged, touched, smelled, eaten, been stung by, bivouac'd with, awed, and astonished by the little creatures most of us just step over every day.

Seeking to share some of my expertise on insects and other crawlies I hope to translate and enhance popular and interesting articles on said creatures in this blog - hopefully entertaining you while learning something myself along the way.

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