Research interests
Bachelor-Project: Vibratory communication during courtship in Pisaura mirabilis
Animals use different modalities for communication between individuals, for example, they produce visual and chemical signals, but also acoustic and vibrational stimuli, which are transmitted through the substrate especially during courtship. The role and the influence of substrate-borne vibrations during the mating behaviour are described for just a few spider species.
The nursery web spider, Pisaura mirabilis, is well known for the male´s behaviour to present a nuptial gift to the female during courtship. This gift plays an important role for the mating success of males. In the project for my Bachelor thesis I will analyse the vibratory signals of males and females during courtship, and their influence on mating success.