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A spotting of several Linyphiidae spiders of the same species in their sheet webs. The first 3 pictures shows the male spiders while the last 3 pictures show a female spider. They are small, about 7mm in length. They are black in color but reflective. I gave them the common name - "Mirror Spiders" because of their reflective exoskeletons that reflect image perfectly. You can see my reflection on the spider's abdomen in the last 2 photos. The obvious difference between the males and the females of the species can be seen through their palps. Like all spiders, the males have swollen palps (pedipalps), large pedipalps is seen in the second photo (my father's photo). Quite common in Kundasang, living in numbers but keeping distances between individuals. Photo 3 shows an alate being eaten.
Bushes in Rose Cabin inn, Kundasang, Sabah, Malaysia.
Sorry for the poor photography. An amazing spotting for me because I have never seen this species outside of Kundasang before, meaning that it could be endemic in Kundasang only. So far I know 2 "colonies" of this species, one here in a bush in Rose Cabin, the other one in a bush next to Panataran Kinabalu Restaurant. >>>Map accuracy : 20m diameter.
Spotted on Dec 11, 2009
Submitted on May 13, 2012
3 Comments
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wong_chun_x...
Almost all the spider families have venom glands, that includes this one.
Most of all the spiders of Malaysia are harmless to humans.
Malaysian spiders are too small and weak (or shy) to bite us, that includes this Mirror spider.
Of course there are exceptions like tarantulas that their bite can pierce through our skin.
Nevertheless, no Malaysian spiders are venomous enough to kill us.
There is one case however, about an old man here who died after being bitten by a spider. I believe that the victim died of wound infections rather than the spider's venom.
Wow! Mirror spider sounds like a perfect name. Are these spiders poisonous? They look very ominous and beautiful all at once. Thanks for sharing.