Group-Living Spider as a Potential Novel Biological Control Agent of the Tomato Pest .

Group-living spiders may be uniquely suited for controlling flying insect pests, as their high tolerance for conspecifics and low levels of cannibalism result in large, predator dense capture webs. In laboratory settings, we tested the ability of the facultatively communal spider, Cyrtophora citricola, to control the tomato leafminer, Tuta absoluta; a major pest of tomato crops worldwide. We tested whether prey capture success was affected by spider body size, and whether prey capture differed among T.

Evolutionary drivers of group foraging: A new framework for investigating variance in food intake and reproduction.

A proposed fundamental driver of group living is more reliable, predictable foraging and reproduction, i.e., reduced variance in food intake and reproductive output.