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Marbled Orb-Weaver

Araneus marmoreus

Description:

Spotted at my friends house... Two main forms of this species are known. The nominate form has an orange abdomen with black or brown marbling while var. pyramidatus is much paler, sometimes almost white, with a single dark blotch towards the rear of the abdomen. The nominate form is found throughout the species' range while var. pyramidatus is found only in Europe, where the two varieties are seldom found together. The female has a body length (excluding legs) of up to 14 mm while the male is rather smaller at 9 mm.

Habitat:

Nocturnal - The spiders build their web at dusk and either wait in the web or in a retreat near the web at night for prey to strike the web. Then the spider runs out and wraps the prey in silk. After the prey is immobilized, the prey is bitten and eventually eaten. Some individuals stay in their webs during the day, but this is not common. They typically rebuild their web each day, or at least the sticky spiral orb part.

Notes:

Harmless - This species, as is common to members of the orbweaver family, is not known to bite humans. It preys on a variety of flying insects.

1 Species ID Suggestions

Adarsha B S
Adarsha B S 11 years ago
Marbled orb weaver
Araneus marmoreus Araneus marmoreus


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5 Comments

Hema  Shah
Hema Shah 11 years ago

Grasshopper,spider and now you should spot a snake! Good going Isabelle!
This cute baby snake came up to my door!
http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/129...

Adarsha B S
Adarsha B S 11 years ago

You are welcome...nice spotted..one of rare spiders....

isabellasmurf
isabellasmurf 11 years ago

Updated spotting ID info.

isabellasmurf
isabellasmurf 11 years ago

Thank you Adarsha B S for the ID assist!

Adarsha B S
Adarsha B S 11 years ago

It seems like a marbled orb weaver...

isabellasmurf
Spotted by
isabellasmurf

Centennial, Colorado, USA

Spotted on Aug 10, 2012
Submitted on Sep 30, 2012

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