Condition-dependent secondary sexual traits and signals are often crucial for mate choice decisions. Nuptial gifts, provided by the male to the female during mating, may represent an indicator of male condition, especially if production of the gift is energetically costly. Additionally, other signalling modalities may well play a role in mate choice in such systems. Females of the nursery web spider Pisaura mirabilis preferably mate with males that provide a prey item wrapped in silk. Apart from the nuptial gift, vibrational signals employed during courtship and mating may reveal additional information about male condition. We tested condition-dependence of male vibrational signals of well-fed versus starved males, when in contact with female dragline silk and during mating trials. Our results show that vibrational signals are produced in P. mirabilis, both during pre-copulatory courtship and during copulation. Male courtship signals were condition-dependent: males in good condition initiated signalling earlier and emitted more vibrational pulses than poor-condition males. They were also more likely to be accepted by the female for copulation. We additionally identified vibrational signals during copulation. These signals were different from pre-copulatory courtship vibrations but did not differ between the treatment groups. This study shows that vibrational communication plays an important role before and during copulation in P. mirabilis. It sets the stage for further experiments on spider biotremology associated with nuptial gift giving behaviour. Male courtship behaviour can indicate a male’s condition and quality and be subject to female mate choice. Vibrational communication during mating plays a crucial role in many animal species. Spiders are known to be extremely sensitive towards vibrations, and there is evidence that vibratory signals are also used during courtship. Here, we study the nuptial gift-giving spider Pisaura mirabilis in which courtship entails providing a nuptial gift by the male to the female. The gift quality determines on the probability and duration of mating. We investigated the role of vibrational behaviour in this species by standardizing nuptial gifts. Our study demonstrates that vibratory signals comprise information about the male’s condition, that signals are also produced during mating and that courtship and copulatory signals are strikingly different. We suggest that vibrational communication provides important condition-dependent traits for female mate choice in addition to the nuptial gift.

中文翻译：

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婚礼送礼蜘蛛雄性振动前交配和交配求爱的条件依赖性差异

依赖条件的第二性征和信号通常对择偶决定至关重要。男性在交配期间向女性提供的结婚礼物可能代表男性状况的指标，特别是如果礼物的制作成本很高。此外，其他信号方式很可能在此类系统中的配偶选择中发挥作用。育苗网蜘蛛 Pisaura mirabilis 的雌性最好与雄性交配，雄性提供用丝包裹的猎物。除了婚礼礼物，在求爱和交配过程中使用的振动信号可能会揭示有关男性状况的其他信息。我们测试了在与雌性拉索丝接触和交配试验期间，营养充足的雄性与饥饿雄性的雄性振动信号的条件依赖性。我们的结果表明振动信号是在 P 中产生的。mirabilis，无论是在交配前的求爱期间还是在交配期间。雄性求爱信号取决于条件：状态良好的雄性比身体状况不佳的雄性更早发出信号并发出更多的振动脉冲。它们也更有可能被雌性接受进行交配。我们还在交配过程中发现了振动信号。这些信号与交配前的求爱振动不同，但在治疗组之间没有差异。这项研究表明，振动交流在奇异果的交配前和交配过程中发挥着重要作用。它为与婚礼送礼行为相关的蜘蛛生物震颤学的进一步实验奠定了基础。雄性求偶行为可以表明雄性的状况和品质，并受雌性择偶的影响。交配期间的振动交流在许多动物物种中起着至关重要的作用。众所周知，蜘蛛对振动极为敏感，并且有证据表明，在求爱期间也会使用振动信号。在这里，我们研究了送礼蜘蛛 Pisaura mirabilis，其中求偶需要男性向女性提供婚礼礼物。礼物的质量决定了交配的概率和持续时间。我们通过标准化婚礼礼物来研究振动行为在这个物种中的作用。我们的研究表明，振动信号包含有关雄性状况的信息，该信号也在交配过程中产生，而求爱和交配信号则截然不同。