Flexible use of patch marks in an insect predator: effect of sex, hunger state, and patch quality

Abstract

Abstract 1. Patch marks that allow the subsequent avoidance of marked areas may be used by small animals to increase foraging efficiency. This study is the first to demonstrate the presence of a patch‐marking system in insect predators. Furthermore, the marking system is found only in females, and factors such as hunger state and patch quality play a key role in determining whether a female will re‐investigate a self‐marked patch.2. Females of the insect predator Orius sauteri avoided areas where the female itself had searched previously but did not avoid areas searched by conspecific females when deprived of prey for 24 h. There was no evidence that males use such a patch‐marking system, indicating the presence of a sex difference in patch‐mark use.3. Females did not discriminate between patches visited previously and patches not visited when they were either well fed or when patches contained abundant prey.4. The patch mark used by females was effective for ≤ 1 h and may be a reliable indicator of a recently visited area in which prey have been depleted.5. These results suggest that O. sauteri females have the flexibility to adjust their behavioural responses to a previously searched area depending on their hunger state and the availability of prey in their foraging environment.