Signature Spider Attempted Mating

Description:

Argiope luzona (Walckenaer, 1842). Male argiope spiders are very much smaller than females and when mating takes place, the male always ends up dead, killed and eaten by the female. Usually, the male is killed by the female immediately after the first mating, but the male always fights for his life and, occasionally, survives the life or death struggle. When this happens, the male will retreat back to his own web. Then, when he decides that the time is right, he tries to mate with the female again. On this second attempt, he might or might not succeed in copulating, but when the female attacks, he puts up no resistance and is dispatched quickly. No one is entirely sure as to why males behave in this way, but it must (in some way) refine the gene pool and, after all these spiders have been around for much longer than humans. So, they must be doing something right. For my short explanation of what I think is in my photos, please look at Notes below.

Habitat:

These spiders, male and female, were spotted in the front yard of the rice mill, on the web of the female moored on the stems of a Blushing Philodendron (Philodendron erubescens). This is a climbing plant which has grown around the trunk of a Mango Tree, from the ground all the way up to the canopy. It has become a haven for Argiope luzona spiders, over the years. If I need some A. luzona pictures, I can almost guarantee that there will be some there. It would be unusual not to find one or two in that habitat.

Notes:

Photos # 1 to 4. These pictures (taken shortly after 8:00 a.m.) show the male spider on the web of the female. Males often spend several days on a web which they construct close to that of the female, but I missed that part. He seemed to be making little moves, but they did not strike me as furtive. The impression I got was that he was actually getting her attention and perhaps looking for a signal that she was ready and willing to copulate. Having witnessed this behaviour before, I knew that it could take several hours. So, I decided to leave them alone at their deadly dance and check back later. I returned, a little after 5:00 p.m. and took the last picture. It shows the male, alive and on the web of the female. I can't be sure if he had already mated and survived an onslaught from the female. If so, he would perhaps be back on her web for a second and this time fatal copulation, or perhaps had not yet succeeded in a first copulation and had simply withdrawn to a safe distance to rethink his strategy. A definitive description of this process would obviously require a great deal of time and effort with probably a considerable amount luck thrown in.