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1 November 2011 Activity Patterns of Two Species of Neotropical Harvestmen (Arachnida: Opiliones) from Costa Rica
Ryan R. Wade, Ednidia M. Loaiza-Phillips, Victor R. Townsend, Daniel N. Proud
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Abstract

Natural history studies serve as important foundations for future investigations of behavioral ecology and provide biologists with critical information needed for the development of empirical research programs. Relatively little is known about the biology of most species of Neotropical harvestmen in Central America. In this field study, we investigated the activity patterns of two common species Cynorta marginalis (Cosmetidae) and Prionostemma sp. (Sclerosomatidae) in a wet tropical forest in Costa Rica. We used visual encounter surveys along randomly selected transects to compare the relative abundance of these species during morning, afternoon, evening, and late night sampling periods. To generate ethograms, we observed up to three individuals of each species for 10 min along each transect, generating 69 behavioral observations for C. marginalis and 51 for Prionostemma. Both species occupy perches on vegetation and are generally nocturnal with respect to activity. After dusk, individuals of C. marginalis actively climb, interact with conspecifics, and forage on the surfaces of small and large trees. During the day, adult Prionostemma form relatively inactive clusters of up to 40 individuals on arboreal perches and descend to the leaf litter after dusk to forage.

© 2011 Entomological Society of America
Ryan R. Wade, Ednidia M. Loaiza-Phillips, Victor R. Townsend, and Daniel N. Proud "Activity Patterns of Two Species of Neotropical Harvestmen (Arachnida: Opiliones) from Costa Rica," Annals of the Entomological Society of America 104(6), 1360-1366, (1 November 2011). https://doi.org/10.1603/AN11018
Received: 26 January 2011; Accepted: 1 August 2011; Published: 1 November 2011
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KEYWORDS
Central America
Cosmetidae
ecology
natural history
Sclerosomatidae
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