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Latrodectus tredecimguttatus (Rossi, 1790) of family Theridiidae is recorded from Jordan for the first time. Four individuals of this species were collected from different localities in 2019 and 2021 in Jordan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Strategic responses to invasive Latrodectus widow spiders are a global challenge due to the risks they pose to health and ecosystems. Chemical strategies involving the use of pyrethroids are effective against adult spiders, but as their populations rebound, chemical control becomes costly and unsustainable for eradication. A major obstacle is the inefficacy of insecticides against eggs, which are covered by a protective silk egg sac. Eradication of invasive spiders must focus on destroying progeny. Here, the responses of eggs in egg sacs of two invasive Latrodectus spiders in Japan (Latrodectus hasseltii (Thorell) and Latrodectus geometricus (C.L. Koch)) to short-term dry-heat exposure were examined. To test whether the dry-heat tolerance of the egg sacs of both spider species differed, lethal temperature (LT) was determined based on the hatching rate of eggs from egg sacs subjected to a range of temperatures. Hatching in both species failed completely when the egg sacs were exposed to temperatures of 55°C and above for 10 min, but the LT to reduce hatching by 90% (LT90) differed significantly between L. hasseltii (50. 9°C) and L. geometricus (52. 8°C). Our study highlights the efficacy of dry heat in suppressing hatching and thus shows the possibility for effective extermination of these noxious invasive pests. Further exploration and investigation of the effects of humidity and heat exposure time on egg sacs under field conditions are needed to guide Latrodectus spider control strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The widow spider, Latrodectus, (Araneae: Theridiidae) comprise about 31 currently recognized species, some species are very hard to distinct; in this study morphological and molecular method has been used to confirm the diagnosis of the spiders. Phylogenetic tree was constructed using the neighbor-joining of some other Latrodectus sp. sampled, including taxa occurring in the Middle East, Australia, New Zealand, North and South America and Europe, and with the two genera Steatoda Sundevall, 1833 and Asagena Sundevall, 1833 outgroup. The results of the analysis show the highest identity (90%) for Latrodectus thoracicus Nicolet 1849 represented by three specimens and for L. pallidus O.P.-Cambridge, 1872 represented by one specimen in addition to (85%) for the false widow Asagena phalerata (Panzer, 1801) represented by one specimen, these three species is recorded in Iraq for the first time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1. Developmental experience, for example food abundance during juvenile stages, is known to affect life history and behaviour. However, the life history and behavioural consequences of developmental experience have rarely been studied in concert. As a result, it is still unclear whether developmental experience affects behaviour through changes in life history, or independently of it. 2. The effect of developmental experience on life history and behaviour may also be masked or affected by individual condition during adulthood. Thus, it is critical to tease apart the effects of developmental experience and current individual condition on life history and behaviour. 3. In this study, we manipulated food abundance during development in the western black widow spider, Latrodectus hesperus, by rearing spiders on either a restricted or ad lib diet. We separated developmental from condition-dependent effects by assaying adult foraging behaviour (tendency to attack prey and to stay on out of the refuge following an attack) and web structure multiple times under different levels of satiation following different developmental treatments. 4. Spiders reared under food restriction matured slower and at a smaller size than spiders reared in ad lib conditions. Spiders reared on a restricted diet were more aggressive towards prey and built webs structured for prey capture, while spiders reared on an ad lib diet were less aggressive and built safer webs. Developmental treatment affected which traits were plastic as adults: restricted spiders built safer webs when their adult condition increased, while ad lib spiders reduced their aggression when their adult condition increased. The amount of individual variation in behaviour and web structure varied with developmental treatment. Spiders reared on a restricted diet exhibited consistent variation in all aspects of foraging behaviour and web structure, while spiders reared on an ad lib diet exhibited consistent individual variation in aggression and web weight only. 5. Developmental experience affected the average life history, behaviour and web structure of spiders, but also shaped the amount of phenotypic variation observed among individuals. Surprisingly, developmental experience also determined the particular way in which individuals plastically adjusted their behaviour and web structure to changes in adult condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Widow spiders have received much attention due to the frequently reported human and animal injures caused by them. Elucidation of the molecular composition and action mechanism of the venoms and toxins has vast implications in the treatment of latrodectism and in the neurobiology and pharmaceutical research. In recent years, the studies of the widow spider venoms and the venom toxins, particularly the-latrotoxin, have achieved many new advances; however, the mechanism of action of the venom toxins has not been completely clear. The widow spider is different from many other venomous animals in that it has toxic components not only in the venom glands but also in other parts of the adult spider body, newborn spiderlings, and even the eggs. More recently, the molecular basis for the toxicity outside the venom glands has been systematically investigated, with four proteinaceous toxic components being purified and preliminarily characterized, which has expanded our understanding of the widow spider toxins. This review presents a glance at the recent advances in the study on the venoms and toxins from the Latrodectus species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The red widow spider, Latrodectus bishopi Kaston, is a species of conservation concern because it is narrowly endemic to threatened palmetto scrub found only on ancient sand ridges in peninsular Florida. We hypothesized that this spider might feed extensively on insects that also are scrub specialists. To ascertain the prey of red widow spiders, we collected arthropods trapped in webs of adult females ( n = 30 per season) located in native oak-palmetto scrub at the Archbold Biological Station after dawn and before dusk for 5 consecutive days in early spring (Mar 1989) and in late spring (May 2003). We identifed a total of 42 species among the 98 specimens collected. Using published regression equations, we converted the size of each specimen to dry mass. We found that 5 species of scarab beetles endemic to Florida scrub accounted for 65% of prey by weight even though their numbers were modest (22% of prey items). In early spring red widow spiders fed predominantly on nocturnally captured coleopterans (78% of prey items), but in late spring when palmetto flowers were blooming near webs day-active hymenopterans were added to the diet. Frequency analysis showed that temporal patterns of prey capture by individual spiders were infrequent (≤ 0.4 prey per day) and statistically random. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the first report of the widow spider Theridiidae from the genus Latrodectus elegans from India. It notes that the comb-foot spider species has clinical significance due to the three species being reported from India. It also explores the variability within the 31 spider species in their different stages of growth.

Research on consistent individual differences in behavior, or 'behavioral syndromes', continues to grow rapidly, and yet, the aspects of behavior under consideration have remained remarkably limited. Here, we consider individual variation in consistency of choice (termed here 'choosiness'), as expressed during habitat choice. We repeatedly tested the responses of female Western Black Widows, Latrodectus hesperus, to two cues of habitat quality: prey chemical cues and variation in web site illuminance. We estimated females' response by the distance they positioned themselves from (1) the source of prey chemical cues and (2) the darkest edge of our test arena. Individuals with low variance in their responses are deemed more 'choosy', whereas individuals with high variance are deemed less 'choosy'. Generally, most females initiated web construction near the source of the prey chemical cues and tended to place themselves in low-light conditions. However, we detected strong, repeatable differences in females' intensity of response, and within-individual variance of response (i.e., choosiness) was correlated across situations: females with highly consistent responses towards cricket chemical cues also exhibited highly consistent responses towards variation in light conditions. When deprived of food for extended periods, females were indistinguishable in their responses towards prey chemical cues, but tended to initiate web construction in brighter lighting conditions. Food-deprived females universally exhibited higher variance and diminished consistency in their responses (i.e., they were less choosy). Additionally, higher choosiness was associated with greater mass loss during choice trials, suggesting choosiness is energetically costly. Our results demonstrate that consistency of response to environmental cues is yet another element of behavior that varies among individuals and variation in choosiness could beget speed/quality trade-offs during animal decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We used experimental manipulations to test adaptive explanations for the courtship display of the male widow spider, Latrodectus pallidus O. Pickard-Cambridge 1872. Two hypotheses have been suggested to explain a long and complex male display: a) Cooperation of males and females in the effort to physically stimulate the female. As the time of male arrival is not predictable, females may delay sexual readiness until the appearance of a courting male, b) Conflict between males and females regarding the display cost. Females impose on the males an energetically costly display that may last several hours as a test of their quality. To test both hypotheses, we manipulated the previous experience of either the male or the female. We presented naive or experienced males (males that had courted and were accepted by females but were prevented from copulating) to females that were either naive or experienced (had been courted by a male but prevented from copulating). We also presented naive males to mated females. Following the stimulation hypothesis, courted females were presumed to have been stimulated to mate and thus were expected to accept non-courting males as mates. Both naive and mated females, however, were expected to await male stimulation before allowing copulation. In contrast, the conflict of interest hypothesis predicts that the female tests each male for quality indicators and therefore a non-courting male should not be accepted as a mate. Mated females, however, should apply a less stringent test to courting males. Our results show that 1) naive females prevented males that did not perform a full courtship display from entering the nest and mounting; 2) naive males courted virgin females with the full display, independent of the female previous courting history; and 3) naive males shortened their courtship when presented with mated females. The results are consistent with the conflict of interest hypothesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The spider genus Latrodectus includes the widely known black widows, notorious because of the extreme potency of their neurotoxic venom. The genus has a worldwide distribution and comprises 30 currently recognized species, the phylogenetic relationships of which were previously unknown. Several members of the genus are synanthropic, and are increasingly being detected in new localities, an occurrence attributed to human mediated movement. In particular, the nearly cosmopolitan range of the brown widow, Latrodectus geometricus, is a suspected consequence of human transport. Although the taxonomy of the genus has been examined repeatedly, the recognition of taxa within Latrodectus has long been considered problematic due to the difficulty associated with identifying morphological features exhibiting discrete geographic boundaries. This paper presents, to our knowledge, the first phylogenetic hypothesis for the Latrodectus genus and is generated from DNA sequences of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase subunit I. We recover two well-supported reciprocally monophyletic clades within the genus: (1) the geometricus clade, consisting of Latrodectus rhodesiensis from Africa, and its is sister species, the cosmopolitan L. geometricus, and (2) the mactans clade containing all other Latrodectus species sampled, including taxa occurring in Africa, the Middle East, Iberian Peninsula, Australia, New Zealand, and North and South America. Recovery of the geometricus and mactans clades is consistent with previous designations of species groups within the genus based on female genitalic morphology. All L. geometricus sampled, consisting of specimens from Africa, Argentina, North America, and Hawaii, were recovered as a strongly supported monophyletic group with minimal amounts of genetic divergence, corroborating the hypothesis that human transport has recently expanded the range of this species. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Discusses the role and effectiveness of spider antivenoms for the treatment of envenomation by medically important spiders of the genera Latrodectus, Laxosceles, Phoneutria and the subfamily Atracinae. Information on human envenomation by theridiid spiders; Worldwide distribution of some species of Latrodectus.

A cDNA encoding a polypeptide of 88 amino acids was cloned following the rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE) procedure using mRNA isolated from the venom glands of the Mediterranean black widow spider (Latrodectus tredecimguttatus) and oligonucleotides based on the sequence of a tryptic fragment putatively from α-latrotoxin. Apart from a potential signal peptide, the rest of this small protein, named latrodectin, was highly hydrophilic, having a calculated molecular mass of 7945 Da and a pI of 4.3. Northern-blot analysis showed that the mRNA was specifically expressed in the venom gland of L. tredecimguttatus and that it was well conserved between two geographically remote species (L. geometricus and L. indistinctus). A polyclonal serum raised in rabbits against the C-terminal sequence of latrodectin detected cross-reactive proteins in the venom fluid, venom gland extracts, and in purified α-latrotoxin, suggesting that latrodectin is intimately associated with α-latrotoxin. Finally, we produced a recombinant protein in a cell system infected with baculovirus and developed an immunoaffinity purification procedure for latrodectin to facilitate further structural and functional analyses of the molecule. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies the fecundity and fertility in Latrodectus hasselti. Proportion of infertile eggs; Factors affecting the fertility of an egg sac; Affirmation that the production of inviable eggs may enable spiderlings to escape from unfavorable areas.

Reports that toxicity from a bite of the black widow spider or related species of the genus Latrodectus accounts for the majority of cases of arachnidism in the U.S. Complication of necrotic arachnidism caused by Loxosceles bites; Symptoms of Loxosceles bite; Investigation of a case of spider bite with severe hemolytic reaction.

Background: Microbiomes can have profound impacts on host biology and evolution, but to date, remain vastly understudied in spiders despite their unique and diverse predatory adaptations. This study evaluates closely related species of spiders and their host-microbe relationships in the context of phylosymbiosis, an eco-evolutionary pattern where the microbial community profile parallels the phylogeny of closely related host species. Using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, we characterized the microbiomes of five species with known phylogenetic relationships from the family Theridiidae, including multiple closely related widow spiders (L. hesperus, L. mactans, L. geometricus, S. grossa, and P. tepidariorum). Results: We compared whole animal and tissue-specific microbiomes (cephalothorax, fat bodies, venom glands, silk glands, and ovary) in the five species to better understand the relationship between spiders and their microbial symbionts. This showed a strong congruence of the microbiome beta-diversity of the whole spiders, cephalothorax, venom glands, and silk glands when compared to their host phylogeny. Our results support phylosymbiosis in these species and across their specialized tissues. The ovary tissue microbial dendrograms also parallel the widow phylogeny, suggesting vertical transfer of species-specific bacterial symbionts. By cross-validating with RNA sequencing data obtained from the venom glands, silk glands and ovaries of L. hesperus, L. geometricus, S. grossa, and P. tepidariorum we confirmed that several microbial symbionts of interest are viably active in the host. Conclusion: Together these results provide evidence that supports the importance of host-microbe interactions and the significant role microbial communities may play in the evolution and adaptation of their hosts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]