The Proceedings of the 27^th European Congress of Arachnology, hosted by EZ lab in Ljubljana, 2–7 September 2012, appeared in the 45 issue of the 2013 „Arachnologische Mitteilungen“, and are guest edited by Matjaž Kuntner.

For more info, visit the ECA 2012 website.

EZ lab and collaborators published a review on spider systematics titled “Systematics – progress in the study of spider diversity and evolution”. The review appears in “Spider Research in the 21st Century” (Siri Scientific Press, Manchester, UK), edited by David Penney.

March 2013: EZ lab conducts field work in the Seychelles and Mozambique for investigating the coevolution of web gigantism and kleptoparasitism in spiders.

With collaborators from the University of Akron and University of Vermont, EZlab published studies on the phylogenetic placement of Psechridae within Entelegynae and the convergent origin of orb-like spider webs (J Zool Syst Evol Res: PDF), as well as on biomaterial evolution that parallels behavioral innovation in the origin of orb-like spider webs (Scientific Reports: PDF).

Urška Pristovšek, an undergraduate EZ lab member, wins the first prize for the best poster presentation in the category Ecology & Behavior, for her presentation titled “Emasculation renders Herennia males more aggressive”.

Congratulations, Urška!

2-7 September 2012

EZ lab organizes European Congress of Arachnology

EZ successfully pulled off the organization of the 27th European Congress of Arachnology, which was held at ZRC SAZU in Ljubljana. We had 157 participants from 39 countries giving 86 oral and 67 poster presentations. For the first time, the organizers offered 30 student grants enabling attendance of those who would be unable to afford the fees.

With collaborators from the National University of Singapore, EZ lab published two studies on spiders with pronounced sexual size dimorphism: one published in PLoS ONE (PDF) on mating plugs and their function in the sexually dimorphic spider Nephila pilipes, and the other published in Journal of Arachnology (PDF) on Nephila female gigantism attained through post-maturity molting.

March-April 2012: EZ lab conducts field work in Madagascar for investigating web gigantism and mating system in Caerostris darwini.

March 2012: EZ lab conducts field work in Cuba for Paleobiogeography of the Caribbean in collaboration with I. Agnarsson.

With collaborators from the National University of Singapore, EZ lab published a study on eunuch remote copulation online in Biology Letters. The study (PDF) attracted immediate media attention, such as:

Science: Cowardly Spider Can Inseminate Female From Afar
Nature: Spiders dodge cannibalism through remote copulation
LiveScience: Spider’s Detachable Penis Finishes Without Him
BBC: Male spiders break off sex organ to boost paternity
Discover Magazine: Male spider snaps off own genitals inside female to fertilise her remotely, while being eaten
The Guardian: Male spiders sacrifice their genitals to fertilise big hungry females
ScientificAmerican: Spider Parting Gift Makes Him Sterile Father