Many ants prey on spiders, suggesting that web-building spiders may avoid micro-locations near ant colonies or frequented by foraging ants. Here we tested the hypothesis that ant-derived semiochemicals deter synanthropic spiders. To generate stimuli, we exposed filter paper for 12 h to workers of European fire ants, Myrmica rubra, black garden ants, Lasius niger, or western carpenter ants, Camponotus modoc, and then offered select urban spiders in three-chamber olfactometer bioassays a choice between ant-exposed filter paper and unexposed control filter paper. Semiochemical deposits of M. rubra, but not of L. niger or C. modoc, had a significant deterrent effect on subadults of the false black widow, Steatoda grossa, the black widow, Latrodectus hesperus, and the hobo spider, Eratigena agrestis, as well as a moderate (but statistically not significant) deterrent effect on the cross spider, Araneus diadematus. The deterrent effect caused by semiochemical deposits of M. rubra may be attributable to the aggressive nature and efficient foraging of M. rubra in its invaded North American range, exerting selection pressure on community members to recognize M. rubra semiochemicals and to avoid micro-locations occupied by M. rubra.

许多蚂蚁捕食蜘蛛，这表明结网蜘蛛可能会避开蚁群附近或觅食蚂蚁经常光顾的微位置。在这里，我们测试了来自蚂蚁的化学信息素阻止共生蜘蛛的假设。为了产生刺激，我们将滤纸暴露于欧洲火蚁（Myrmica rubra）、黑园蚁（ Lasius niger）或西部木蚁（ Camponotus modoc）的工蚁下 12 小时，然后在三室嗅觉计生物测定中为选定的城市蜘蛛提供选择介于蚂蚁暴露的滤纸和未暴露的对照滤纸之间。 M. rubra的化学沉积物（而非L. niger或C. modoc ）对假黑寡妇 ( Steatodagrossa)、黑寡妇 ( Latrodectus hesperus ) 和流浪汉蜘蛛 ( Eratigena agrestis) 的亚成虫具有显着的威慑作用，如对十字蜘蛛（Araneus diadematus）也有中等（但统计上不显着）的威慑作用。 M. rubra化学信息沉积物引起的威慑作用可能归因于M. rubra在其入侵的北美范围内的攻击性和高效觅食，对群落成员施加选择压力，要求其识别M. rubra化学信息并避开微位置被M. rubra占据。