Kleptoparasitism, the theft of resources from another organism, is a widespread foraging strategy among animals. Many argyrodinae web spiders (teridiidae) are obligate kleptoparasites that have abandoned network construction, relying instead on larger host networks (kleptotanies). Theory predicts that kleptoparasites are not randomly distributed among host networks, and previous studies indicate that network architecture (size and tenure) and prey availability affect kleptoparasite abundance and host choice. This study is the first to examine argyrodine biology in Madagascar and provides insights into an endemic community of multiple species of spider kleptoparasites and their in situ distribution across contrasting host networks: nephilingis (Nephilidaegreat nocturnal orb weavers), Caripetella (Pisauridaegreat builders of nocturnal sheets) and anelosimo (teridiidaesmall catheter-like social spiders that build tangled 3D webs). We found a surprising diversity of nine kleptoparasite species in six genera that, surprisingly, are not conspecific with the five species previously known from all of Madagascar. The composition and abundance of kleptoparasite species varied among the three hosts: some appeared host-specific, while others are versatile. In general, argyrodine kleptoparasites evidently discriminate between hosts, but differ in the degree of host preference. At the community level, we speculate that the assembly of species into host networks involves a complex interaction between host preference and the competitive hierarchy of species. Future field research should investigate this system as a community of multiple interacting species to gain a more complete understanding of the rules that may govern the assembly of diverse kleptoparasites into equally variable host networks.
Agnarsson I, Ramahefarison FN, Matthíasdóttir H, Kudari L, Dagsson M, Baldursdóttir N, Bergsdóttir R, Halldórsdóttir R, Magnússon S, Björnsdóttir S, Gregorič M (2025) Which network to invade? Argyrodine kleptoparasites differentiate between host networks of different architecture. Biodiversity Data Journal 13: e172146. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.13.e172146
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