Bingman Verner P, Graving Jacob M, Hebets Eileen A, Wiegmann Daniel D
Department of Psychology and J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA
Department of Biological Sciences and J.P. Scott Center for Neuroscience, Mind and Behavior, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA.
J Exp Biol. 2017 Mar 1;220(Pt 5):885-890. doi: 10.1242/jeb.149823. Epub 2016 Dec 23.
Amblypygids, or whip spiders, are nocturnal, predatory arthropods that display a robust ability to navigate to their home refuge. Prior field observations and displacement studies in amblypygids demonstrated an ability to home from distances as far away as 10 m. In the current study, micro-transmitters were used to take morning position fixes of individual following an experimental displacement of 10 m from their home refuge. The intention was to assess the relative importance of vision compared with sensory input acquired from the antenniform legs for navigation as well as other aspects of their spatial behavior. Displaced individuals were randomly assigned to three treatment groups: (i) control individuals; (ii) vision-deprived individuals, VD; and (iii) individuals with sensory input from the tips of their antenniform legs compromised, AD. Control and VD subjects were generally successful in returning home, and the direction of their movement on the first night following displacement was homeward oriented. By contrast, AD subjects experienced a complete loss of navigational ability, and movement on the first night indicated no hint of homeward orientation. The data strongly support the hypothesis that sensory input from the tips of the antenniform legs is necessary for successful homing in amblypygids following displacement to an unfamiliar location, and we hypothesize an essential role of olfaction for this navigational ability.
鞭蛛，即鞭蝎，是夜行性捕食性节肢动物，具有很强的返回其栖息地的导航能力。先前对鞭蛛的野外观察和位移研究表明，它们能够从10米远的地方返回栖息地。在本研究中，使用微型发射器在个体从其栖息地进行10米的实验性位移后，于早晨确定其位置。目的是评估视觉与从触角状腿获取的感觉输入相比，在导航以及它们空间行为的其他方面的相对重要性。被位移的个体被随机分配到三个处理组：（i）对照组个体；（ii）视觉剥夺个体，VD；（iii）触角状腿尖端的感觉输入受损的个体，AD。对照组和VD组的个体通常能够成功返回家园，并且在位移后的第一个晚上它们的移动方向是朝向家园的。相比之下，AD组个体完全丧失了导航能力，并且在第一个晚上的移动没有显示出任何朝向家园的迹象。这些数据有力地支持了这样的假设，即触角状腿尖端的感觉输入对于鞭蛛在被转移到不熟悉的位置后成功归巢是必要的，并且我们推测嗅觉在这种导航能力中起着至关重要的作用。
