A Question on Mating Hooks

[GrayB]

Hi everyone,

I recently took a photo of a salticid which seemed to show mating hooks below the left palp. I showed the image to a mate who photographs a lot of jumping spiders and he told me that he'd never come across a jumper that showed mating hooks. So my question is, do jumping spiders possess mating hooks? Or is what I thought were mating hooks on the photograph not mating hooks at all?
Any help with this as always much appreciated
Cheers.
Gray.

[Meta menardi]

I can only suggest that you are seeing part of a males distended palp. I did type in a more complete answer, but the software said the token has expired, so this is just a quicky.

Another 20 min. after you have decided to go to bed is not wanted.

[GrayB]

Jumpers are fairly new to me I've been trying to photograph them for just over 12 months but their anatomy I know next to nothing about. If you get time to explain exactly what distended palp means I really appreciate it. In the mean time I'll do some searching myself.
Cheers
Gray.

[No.9 Spider]

Mating hooks or Tibial hooks as the name implies are found on the tibia of some of the more primitive spiders, those under the group Theraphosidae - Tarantulas being the more popular name.

When a spider matures into a male upon it's final moult, the palps develope into an often complex copulatory organ. It's the key diagnostic to determine a species as they are all different, species to species. The corresponding female genitalia (epigyne) can be similarly complex and will accept (with few exceptiions) only the corresponding palp, hence it's often described as a lock and key arrangement.
The male takes up sperm from his underside into the complex organ that his palp has now become and transfers it to the females epigyne.
The complex working parts of the male copulatory organ are contained in the extreme section of the palp within a 'cup' like structure called the cymbium. Sometimes during or after mating, the complex working parts can sometimes come out of the protective cymbium and are what we call 'distended' or displaced, and this is what you are seeing in your photo, a part of the male reproductive organ out of position.
Bit long winded but hope that helps!


No.9 Spider

[Meta menardi]

Thanks for that No. 9, I thought it could be that but it is good to have it backed up.

[GrayB]

No9 and MM,
Thanks for all your help with this, I'm not going to pretend that I fully understand the explanation you've given but I do understand now what I'm seeing in this particular shot. I was going to post another shot of another jumper that seemed to be showing the same sort of thing but I'm assuming that this will be the same sort of displacement.
Thanks again for all your help
Cheers
Gray.