Influence of sex and egg-case presence on predatory behavior of the wolf spider Pardosa valens Barnes (Araneae: Lycosidae)

The wolf spider, Pardosa valens, displayed distinct "sit-and-wait" predatory behaviors during interactions with the smaller, congeneric prey, Pardosa distincta, in experimental chambers. Adult female P. valens, from which the egg cases had been removed, more frequently captured and attempted to capture prey and had the highest value for a measure of speed or efficiency of capture. Females without egg cases exhibited higher frequencies for those behaviors that were components of the orientation, approach, and capture sequence observed during interactions. The greater frequencies of predatory behaviors displayed by these reproductively mature wolf spiders are predictable for a terrestrial arthropod in a high-elevation, seasonally extreme environment, where energy allocated to a large number of small eggs may be the best strategy.