In animal taxa, the behavior of choosing a microhabitat determines the context in which individuals engage in all other behaviors and interactions. Microhabitat choice has particularly important implications for animal communication, because the successful transmission of information between individuals is highly context-dependent. Substrate-borne vibrations, which are commonly produced, detected, and used for communication by arthropods, are especially influenced by substrate choice because substrates vary widely in their vibration transmission properties. In this laboratory-based study, we examine vibration transmission properties of substrates commonly encountered in nature by the jumping spider Habronattus clypeatus and also examine whether these spiders exhibit a preference for particular substrates using a choice experiment. We predicted that spiders would prefer substrates that can better transmit vibratory signals. We found that leaf litter minimized the attenuation of vibratory signals, while rocks and sand sharply attenuated the signals. In behavioral trials, more spiders chose leaf litter or rocks as their first substrate over sand. Further, spiders spent more time on, and were more likely to jump to, leaf litter and rocks than sand. These results suggest that substrate preference by H. clypeatus partially matches the choice that would maximize signal transmission efficiency, indicating that the ability to communicate with conspecifics may influence these animals’ choice of microhabitat.

在动物分类群中，选择微栖息地的行为决定了个体参与所有其他行为和互动的背景。微栖息地的选择对动物交流具有特别重要的意义，因为个体之间信息的成功传输是高度依赖于环境的。节肢动物通常产生、检测和用于通信的基板振动尤其受基板选择的影响，因为基板的振动传输特性差异很大。在这项基于实验室的研究中，我们检查了跳蛛Habronattus clypeatus在自然界中常见的基材的振动传输特性并使用选择实验检查这些蜘蛛是否表现出对特定底物的偏好。我们预测蜘蛛会更喜欢能够更好地传递振动信号的基质。我们发现落叶最小化了振动信号的衰减，而岩石和沙子则急剧衰减了信号。在行为试验中，更多的蜘蛛选择落叶或岩石作为它们在沙子上的第一个基质。此外，与沙子相比，蜘蛛在落叶和岩石上花费的时间更多，也更有可能跳到落叶和岩石上。这些结果表明H. clypeatus 的底物偏好部分匹配了最大化信号传输效率的选择，表明与同种交流的能力可能会影响这些动物对微栖息地的选择。