Not all eight of a European wolf spider ’s leg are equal , according to a unexampled study in theJournal of Zoologythat suggests that , like many humans , spider may be right - handed .
behavioural lateralisation , which name to thepreference for using one side of the body over the other , has previously been reported in a number ofdifferent species , and is due to certain morphological or functional specializations in either the left or ripe side of the brain .
To find out whether maletarantulascan be sort among the many animate being that expose such behavioral asymmetry , the survey authors place the arachnoid in a tonne - shaped maze with a corridor on both the remaining and right sides of a central chamber .
First , the team placed hot cockroaches at the end of each corridor , knowing that these happen to be among tarantulas ’ favourite snacks . begin in the center of the maze , the spiders systematically prefer to travel down the correct - hand corridor .
The researchers then take over the experiment , except this meter they placed female European wolf spider instead of prey at the close of the corridors . Once again , the male spider went to the rightfield alternatively of the leftfield , draw by the pheromones of the leggy ladies .
tarantula apply a range of sensory apparatus to detect both prey and mates , include several pairs of eyes and haircloth call trichobothria that break up up chemicals and vibrations in the melodic phrase . The species used in this experimentation , Brachypelma albopilosum , has four pairs of optic , arranged in two horizontal rows .
When examining these eyes , the researchers witness no departure in size between those on the rightfulness and those on the left wing , while also noting that eyes on both side have the same compactness of photoreceptors . This mean that the left and correct eyes receive the same amount of lightness , so the spiders ’ preference for smell target and mates on their right side must be triggered by a quirk of their neuronic wiring , rather than any physiological attributes .
Similarly , the tarantula were find to have the same density of trichobothria on both side of their consistency , once again indicate that thisright - handednessis not down to morphology , but must instead be get by the way that the spider ’ brains decode information come from the left and right sides of the consistency .
