Herbivore-Induced Rice Volatiles Attract and Affect the Predation Ability of the Wolf Spiders, Pirata subpiraticus and Pardosa pseudoannulata

Spiders are important natural enemies of rice pests. Studying the effects of herbivore-induced rice volatiles on spider attraction and predation ability may lead to safer methods for pest prevention and control. In this study, four-arm olfactometer, predation ability experiment, and field trapping experiment were used to evaluate the effects of herbivore-induced rice volatiles on Pirata subpiraticus Bösenberg et Strand (Araneae: Lycosidae) and Pardosa pseudoannulata Bösenberg et Strand (Araneae: Lycosidae). The 0.5 μg/μL linalool concentration was attractive, and also shortened the predation latency in male P. subpiraticus and female P. pseudoannulata. The 0.5 μg/μL linalool concentration increased the daily predation capacity of female P. pseudoannulata. Male P. pseudoannulata were attracted to 1.0 g/L methyl salicylate, which also shortened their predation latency. In field experiments, methyl salicylate and linalool were effective for trapping spiders. Herbivore-induced rice volatiles attract rice field spiders and affect their predatory ability. These results suggest that herbivore-induced rice volatiles can be used to attract spiders and provide improved control of rice pests.

Diversity and Function of Wolf Spider Gut Microbiota Revealed by Shotgun Metagenomics

Wolf spiders (Lycosidae) are crucial component of integrated pest management programs and the characteristics of their gut microbiota are known to play important roles in improving fitness and survival of the host. However, there are only few studies of the gut microbiota among closely related species of wolf spider. Whether wolf spiders gut microbiota vary with habitats remains unknown. Here, we used shotgun metagenomic sequencing to compare the gut microbiota of two wolf spider species, Pardosa agraria and P. laura from farmland and woodland ecosystems, respectively. The results show that the gut microbiota of Pardosa spiders is similar in richness and abundance. Approximately 27.3% of the gut microbiota of P. agraria comprises Proteobacteria, and approximately 34.5% of the gut microbiota of P. laura comprises Firmicutes. We assembled microbial genomes and found that the gut microbiota of P. laura are enriched in genes for carbohydrate metabolism. In contrast, those of P. agraria showed a higher proportion of genes encoding acetyltransferase, an enzyme involved in resistance to antibiotics. We reconstructed three high-quality and species-level microbial genomes: Vulcaniibacterium thermophilum, Anoxybacillus flavithermus and an unknown bacterium belonging to the family Simkaniaceae. Our results contribute to an understanding of the diversity and function of gut microbiota in closely related spiders.

New data on the wolf spiders from the Acantholycosa-complex (Araneae: Lycosidae) from the South Siberia

Four new species belonging to the Acantholycosa-complex from South Siberia (Russia and East Kazakhstan) are diagnosed, described and illustrated: Acantholycosa kulikovi sp. n. (♀, Kazakhstan), A. sergeevi sp. n. (♂, Russia), A. sidorovi sp. n. (♂♀, Russia) and Mongolicosa lizae sp. n. (♂♀, Russia). Previously unknown females of Acantholycosa levinae Marusik, Azarkina & Koponen, 2004 and A. sayanensis Marusik, Azarkina & Koponen, 2004 are described for the first time.

The brain transcriptome of the wolf spider, Schizocosa ocreata

Objectives Arachnids have fascinating and unique biology, particularly for questions on sex differences and behavior, creating the potential for development of powerful emerging models in this group. Recent advances in genomic techniques have paved the way for a significant increase in the breadth of genomic studies in non-model organisms. One growing area of research is comparative transcriptomics. When phylogenetic relationships to model organisms are known, comparative genomic studies provide context for analysis of homologous genes and pathways. The goal of this study was to lay the groundwork for comparative transcriptomics of sex differences in the brain of wolf spiders, a non-model organism of the pyhlum Euarthropoda, by generating transcriptomes and analyzing gene expression. Data description To examine sex-differential gene expression, short read transcript sequencing and de novo transcriptome assembly were performed. Messenger RNA was isolated from brain tissue of male and female subadult and mature wolf spiders (Schizocosa ocreata). The raw data consist of sequences for the two different life stages in each sex. Computational analyses on these data include de novo transcriptome assembly and differential expression analyses. Sample-specific and combined transcriptomes, gene annotations, and differential expression results are described in this data note and are available from publicly-available databases.

Notes on Indian wolf spiders: I. Genus Evippa Simon, 1882 (Araneae: Lycosidae, Evippinae)

Indian wolf spider species of the genus Evippa Simon, 1882 based on the type material available in the National Zoological Collection, Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata are revised. One new synonymy is recognised: Evippa mandlaensis Gajbe, 2004 syn. nov. is synonymised with Wadicosa fidelis (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872). All the type material examined are imaged and supplementary descriptions for Evippa shivajii Tikader & Malhotra, 1980, Evippa sohani Tikader & Malhotra, 1980, and Evippa solanensis Tikader & Malhotra, 1980 are provided.