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Pepito P. J. G., Barrion-Dupo A. L., Nuneza O. M., 2016 the Practice of Spider-Wrestling in Northern Mindanao

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Pepito P. J. G., Barrion-Dupo A. L., Nuneza O. M., 2016 the Practice of Spider-Wrestling in Northern Mindanao AES BIOFLUX Advances in Environmental Sciences - International Journal of the Bioflux Society The practice of spider-wrestling in Northern Mindanao, Philippines: its implications to spider diversity 1Princess Janee G. Pepito, 2Aimee L. Barrion-Dupo, 1Olga M. Nuñeza 1 Department of Biological Sciences, Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology, Tibanga, Iligan City, Philippines; 2 Environmental Biology Division, Institute of Biological Sciences, University of the Philippines Los Baňos, College, Laguna, Philippines. Corresponding author: O. M. Nuñeza, [email protected] Abstract. Spiders that are used as game or wrestling animals in the Philippines are called derby spiders. This study describes the details of spider wrestling sport in Northern Mindanao through profiling of gamer-respondents and constructing age structures of species commonly used in spider wrestling. Results showed that the higher the income of gamer-respondents, the bigger is the bet placed. Gamer- respondents have certain practices to prepare spiders for the game. Ten species of spiders from family Araneidae were identified to be used in the spider wrestling sport. Neoscona vigilans (60.19%) and Neoscona punctigera (32.87%) were the most commonly used species for spider fighting in all areas sampled. Only female spiders, mostly mature females of reproductive age, are used as derby spiders. The population of the most common derby spiders appears to be declining based on the constructed age structure. Key Words: age structure, Araneidae, derby spiders, Neoscona, population. Introduction. Spiders are invertebrates belonging to class Arachnida and occur almost in every habitat. Arachnids constitute the second largest class representing 7% of total documented arthropods and it is estimated that 8.3% of arthropods are arachnids (Arunkumar & Jayaprakash 2014). Order Araneae includes 110 families of 3,849 genera and 42,473 species (Sharma et al 2013). This is a group of highly diversified organisms with the world’s third largest count of species (Platnick 2013). Spiders are generalist predators and have the world’s most abundant taxon – Insecta – as their prime food (Maloney et al 2003). They can be found in almost all terrestrial habitats in natural settings, in fact, they can be found in most anthropogenic habitats (Wise 1993). According to the study of Chetia & Kalita (2012), spiders are important but poorly- studied group of arthropods that play a significant role in the regulation of insect pests and other invertebrate populations in most ecosystems. Many species of spiders are good indicators of environmental health and they are sensitive to habitat loss, climatic change, and environmental upheavals. Despite their abundance, ecological importance, and ubiquitous occurrences, spiders are seldom included among organisms surveyed for extensive studies and conservation (Hippargi et al 2011). Spider wrestling is not exclusive to the Philippines for there is a long tradition of spider wrestling in Kajiki, Japan (Matejowsky 2003). In the Philippines, a particular group of spiders is fondly collected by children and used as game animals, and these are called derby spiders (Barrion-Dupo 2008). Some concerns have been raised about the sport’s impact on the educational and moral development of its participants, not to mention its effect on the environment (Matejowsky 2003), and not everyone is pleased with the spider wrestling sport (Moore 2013). Due to unsustainable human activities, the ecosystem of spiders is under high risk of destruction. In this regard, it is essential to improve upon the knowledge on biodiversity to develop proper conservation strategies and monitoring systems. An action AES Bioflux, 2016, Volume 8, Issue 2. 111 http://www.aes.bioflux.com.ro strategy implemented for environmental conservation involves surveys for monitoring systems (Chetia & Kalita 2012). Since no extensive studies on spider wrestling in this region have been done, these animals remain unprotected. Spiders were studied by Cabili & Nuñeza (2014), Enriquez & Nuñeza (2014), Garciano et al (2014) and Dacanay et al (2014) in different habitats in Mindanao. However, studies related to spider fighting in the Philippines and particularly in Mindanao are wanting. Thus, there is a need for research documenting the present status of this sport in the country as well as its effect on the population of spiders used for sport. As such, the results of this study hope to contribute towards identifying threats to the survival of these spiders and aid in the formulation of protection schemes for these species. This study aims to describe the details of the sport of spider wrestling in the selected areas of Northern Mindanao, Philippines by profiling the “gamers” and their practices, identifying the spiders used for spider wrestling in selected areas in Northern Mindanao, and constructing an age structure for the most common species of spiders. Material and Method. The study was conducted in the selected areas in Northern Mindanao which include the five provinces of the region, namely: Misamis Occidental (08°33´N, 123°70´E), Lanao del Norte (08°03´N, 124°00´E), Misamis Oriental (08°45´N, 125°00´E), Camiguin (09°17´N, 124°72´E), and Bukidnon (07°92´N, 125°08´E). This region occupies the North-Central part of the Mindanao Island. It is bounded by the Mindanao Sea on the north, Western Mindanao on the west, Caraga Region on the east and Regions 11 and 12 on the South (CountryStat Philippines 2014). Northern Mindanao has a total land area of 1,714,803 hectares, of which 897,134 hectares are established as forestland and 817,669 hectares are alienable and disposable lands (DENR 2015). Per 2011 Philippine Forestry Statistics, the region has a total forest cover of 337,493 hectares, distributed as follows: Misamis Occidental with 43,880 hectares; Lanao del Norte with 68,625; Misamis Oriental with 45,026; Camiguin with 7,367; and Bukidnon with 172,595 hectares of existing forests. This study was specifically conducted in three areas per province: Bonifacio (08°10´N, 123°60´E), Tangub (08°04´N, 123°45´E), and Oroquieta (08°29´N, 123°48´E) of the province of Misamis Occidental; Iligan (08°23´N, 124°25´E), Tubod (08°05´N, 123°79´E), and Kauswagan (08°19´N, 124°09´E) of the province of Lanao del Norte; El Salvador (08°57´N, 124°52´E), Gitagum (08°60´N, 124°40´E), and Medina (08°91´N, 125°02´E) of Misamis Oriental; Mambajao (09°25´N, 124°72´E), Mahinog (09°15´N, 124°78´E), and Sagay (09°12´N, 124°72´E) of the province of Camiguin; and, Malaybalay (08°09´N, 125°08´E), Baungon (08°25´N, 124°72´E), and Kibawe (07°57´N, 124°98´E) of the province of Bukidnon. The study areas were randomly selected. One-on-one interview with the respondents using a survey questionnaire (Annex 1) was conducted from December 2014 to February 2015 in all provinces. Interview questionnaire was designed for collecting information on species of spiders used, collection sites, and information regarding the spider wrestling game. It also includes the profile of the respondents and their purpose of playing the game. This method was purposely done in order for the respondents to express freely their answers on the questions. The data were self-reported by the respondents. Courtesy call was done first to the chairman of the barangays to let them know about the study. Study areas per province were randomly chosen. Three hundred respondents were interviewed during the conduct of the study. Sixty respondents were selected in each province. The respondents were those who are involved in the game or sport. They were informed first about the objective of the study before proceeding with the interview. The interview was conducted in Cebuano which is the local dialect in the area. The completed questionnaires were checked, coded, and stored for data entry. The data were then entered in Microsoft Excel and subjected to data analysis. Data were analyzed using the PAST software ver.2.17c. Frequency distribution and percentage were done for data analysis from survey data. Correlation analysis was also performed to know the relationship between income status of the respondents and the AES Bioflux, 2016, Volume 8, Issue 2. 112 http://www.aes.bioflux.com.ro bet for the spider wrestling sport. Thematic analysis was done to cluster repeating themes in the answers of the respondents and to know the qualities of spiders that usually win the games. This illustrates which themes are important in the description of the phenomenon under study (Joffe 2012). For further scientific identification, derby spiders from the gamers were collected. Samples were placed in large containers and pictures of live specimens were then taken. Specimens were preserved in 70% ethanol solution in glass vials labeled with date of collection for later identification. All specimens were identified by the second author at the Museum of Natural History, University of the Philippines Los Baños. The spider specimens were examined under a microscope to know which age class they belong, either immature, sub-adult or mature species for female spiders. This information was used for the construction of the age structure of the most common species used for wrestling. Results and Discussion. In this study, there were 300 gamer-respondents, 60 from each of the five provinces. All of the respondents are males. The age of the respondents ranged from 5 to 58 years old (Figure 1). Most of them belong to age group 11 to 20 years old (38.67%). The youngest age range of the respondents was within 5 to 10 years old (10.67%) while the oldest was from 31 years old and above (22.0%). Most of the young respondents were from Camiguin (28.33%) and most of the older respondents were from Bukidnon (46.67%). Schoolboys are not the only ones involved in the sport.
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