Changes in personality of jumping spiders suggest effects of insecticide exposure may have been underestimated
Insecticides that are sprayed in orchards and fields across North America may be more toxic to spiders than scientists previously believed.
A McGill research team reached this conclusion after looking at changes in the behaviour of individual Bronze Jumping Spiders both before and after exposure to Phosmet, a widely used broad spectrum insecticide. It is a finding with far-reaching implications for agricultural production and ecosystem health.
“Bronze jumping spiders play an important role in orchards and fields, especially at the beginning of the agricultural season, by eating many of the pests like the oblique-banded leafroller, a moth that attacks young plants and fruit,” says Raphaël Royauté, a former McGill PhD student whose study on the subject was published in Functional Ecology recently. “Farmers spray insecticides on the plants to get rid of these same pests, and it was thought that it had little significant effect on the spiders’ behaviours. But we now know that this isn’t the case.”
The researchers discovered this fact by focusing on the way that exposure to insecticide affected the behaviour of individual spiders, including things like their ability to leap on prey and their interest in exploring new territory, both of which are crucial to their survival and to their role in keeping down pests.
Spider personalities
“Most individuals have an individual signature in their behaviours, what scientist call “personality types”says Royauté. “Some individuals are willing to take risks when predators are present, explore new territories faster, or capture prey more quickly. But the effects of insecticides on personality types remains poorly described.”
The researchers found that, in general, the behaviour of spiders became more “unpredictable” and individuals behaved less according to their personality type once they were exposed to insecticide. This could be because some individuals are much more sensitive to the insecticide than others. Interestingly, they also found that male and female spiders were affected differently. Males who had been exposed to the insecticide were able to continue to capture prey as they had before, but “lost” their personality type when exploring their environment. Individual females, on the other hand, were much more affected in their ability to capture prey.
Read more: Pesticides: more toxic than previously thought?
The Latest on: Insecticides
[google_news title=”” keyword=”insecticides” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Insecticides
- Chinese fruit fly genomes reveal global migrations, repeated evolutionon May 13, 2024 at 8:07 am
Fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster), which humans have inadvertently spread around the globe, arrived in China roughly 4,000 years ago, according to a new population genomics study that adds to our ...
- 'I had no idea how many fruit flies I had': This plug-in fly trap is just $17on May 12, 2024 at 5:53 am
The plug-in bug trap is only $17 on Amazon, which is quite the bargain compared to an exterminator. It starts working immediately and uses no chemical insecticides. Instead, it lures these critters ...
- Banning safe pesticides is bad policy and harmful to farmerson May 9, 2024 at 1:49 pm
The bill would ban the use of neonicotinoids, insecticides applied as seed coatings to avoid costly pesticide spraying while targeting only the pests.
- Are cicadas harmful to dogs? What to know if your dog eats one during 'cicadageddon'on May 9, 2024 at 8:12 am
Two broods of cicadas will co-emerge this spring, making way for a massive cicada invasion. Is there any harm if your dog or cat gets into the bugs?
- Insecticides (India) Ltd 532851on May 8, 2024 at 5:00 pm
We sell different types of products and services to both investment professionals and individual investors. These products and services are usually sold through license agreements or subscriptions ...
- 30 officers fail to file plaints under Insecticides Act on time, in soupon May 3, 2024 at 12:37 am
In a startling revelation, the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has told the Punjab and Haryana High Court that no less than 30 officers had failed to file criminal complaints under the ...
- Strawberry farmers using billions of tiny, blind, predatory mites as successful alternative to toxic insecticideson April 26, 2024 at 2:47 pm
James Hill is breeding billions of tiny blind predatory mites that are packed on ice and posted to strawberry farms in the battle against destructive sap-sucking insects.
- JoAnne Skelly: Do systemic insecticides work against bark beetles in pines?on April 14, 2024 at 5:00 pm
University of California, Davis Integrated Pest Management program states: “Systemic insecticides, meaning those that are implanted or injected through the bark or applied to soil beneath trees, have ...
- The Downsides Of Using Systemic Pest Control Insecticides In Your Yardon November 11, 2023 at 11:37 am
In your pursuit of a pest-free garden, systemic insecticides promise an appealing solution. They enter the plant's internal structure by subtly weaving through the root network, aiming to turn them ...
- Insecticides for aphid control on vegetableson December 17, 2022 at 11:04 am
Insecticide efficacy rankings based on consensus of Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Southern entomologists. Authored by Tom Kuhar, Helene Doughty, Kelly McIntyre (Virginia Tech); Jim Walgenbach (NC State ...
via Bing News