Arachnura higginsi

Arachnura higginsi
Tailed Spider female juvenile
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Suborder: Araneomorphae
Family: Araneidae
Genus: Arachnura
Species: A. higginsi
Binomial name
Arachnura higginsi
(Koch, 1872)
Synonyms

* Epeira higginsii
* Arachnura higginsii

Arachnura higginsi, known as the Tailed Spider or Scorpion Tailed Spider and the Scorpion Orb Weaver is a common Australian spider belonging to the family Araneidae. It occurs in many parts of Australia.

Description and Habit

The body length of males is 2 mm and females around 16 mm. Body colour varies from cream to brown. Juveniles may be brightly coloured. The tiny male does not possess a tail. The prominent tail is somewhat similar to a scorpion, though the creature is harmless to humans. The web is near ground level, on an angle or sometimes horizontal. Small flying insects are the usual prey.

Egg sacs number up to eight. They are oval in shape, 5 mm x 4 mm of tough, brown silk with a woolly appearance. Egg sacs are added across missing sectors of the web. Eggs are creamy, 0.8mm in diameter, 50 to 60 in number, not sticky.

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, August 02, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.