There are several types of Argiope spiders which live in different countries. They are not considered a dangerous spider but are venomous like all spiders. The Black and Yellow Argiopes (Argiope Aurantia) are commonly found in the United States in the Summer months. They are often called “writing” spiders because of the zigzag stablimentum which characterise their web. […]
Tent Spider
There are many different species of Tent Spiders in Australia. The largest Tent Spider is 19 mm (around 1 inch) long and is found in the northern parts of Australia. The female has a grey head and a black body with white spots. The tiny male Tent Spider has an orange body. The Latin name for […]
Sac Spiders
Sac spiders belong to the genus Cheiracanthium and the family Clubionidae. They are quite small and easy to overlook—about 1/4 – 3/8 inch long, with no conspicuous markings. The front legs are longer than the other three pairs. Sac spiders are quite pale. A common house species, the yellow sac spider is pale greenish, tan […]
Huntsman Spider
Many people are confused by 5 similar looking spiders – the harmless Huntsman, Wolf Spider, Southern House Spider (Kukulcania), Fishing Spider and the notorious Brown Recluse. Occasionally, the Huntsman Spider, Heteropoda venatoria (Linnaeus), is misidentified as a Brown Recluse. However, the colour pattern on the carapace of this species is reversed, with a light median mark on a dark […]
False Widow Spider – Steatoda nobilis
Habitat and range In common with other members of the Theridiidae family, Steatoda nobilis constructs a cobweb, i.e., an irregular tangle of sticky silken fibers. As with other web-weavers, these spiders have very poor eyesight and depend mostly on vibrations reaching them through their webs to orient themselves to prey or warn them of larger animals that could injure […]
Common House Spider
The common house spider (Parasteatoda tepidariorum), referred to as American house spider internationally, is a spider species of the genus Parasteatoda which is mainly indigenous to the New World, with P. tepidariorum australis (common gray house spider) also encountered in some pars of Myanmar and Pakistan. American house spiders are synanthrope and build their tangled web in or near […]
Magnificent Spider
There are at least 2 species of spiders with the common name Magnificent spider. The Bolas spider is one of them. The female is 12 mm long while the male is 2 mm. The Magnificent spider is also known as the Angler spider. This spider is part of a family (the Mastophoreae) within the orb-weaving […]
Daddy Long-legs
The name ‘Daddy-Long-Legs’ has been used for at least two different kinds of arachnids – spiders (Pholcus phalangioides) and harvestmen (Opoliones). Daddy Long Legs (Pholcus phalangioides) The animal which most biologists call “daddy-long-legs”, is a spider, Pholcus phalangioides, which belongs to the spider family Pholcidae, order Araneida, class Arachnida. Pholcid spiders are araneomorph spiders which kill and digest […]
Lady Bird Spider
The Lady Bird Spider used to have the name of Eresus niger but nowadays it is called Eresus cinnaberinus. It is a member of the Erisidae family. This spider is very rare and is protected in some countries. The name “Lady Bird” comes from the appearance of the adult male seen in this picture. He only gets this […]
Lynx Spider
Genus/species: Peucetia viridansOrder/family: Araneae: Oxyopidae Introduction: Lynx Spiders are long legged spiders which can be easily identified by the very long spines on their legs and their eye setting. Their abdomen is like a pencil ending in a point. Their size is between 4 and 6 mm. The spiders are common in Brisbane gardens. They […]