Signature Spider

Description:

This is a young adult female Signature Spider. It is 6.5 mm. long, (excluding the legs) and, as you can see, it has produced a Cruciate Stabilimentum. If this female survives ubtil she is full grown, she will reach a length of approximately 24 mm. and she will have a beautifully coloured pattern on her carapace.

Habitat:

This Signature Spider was spotted in our backyard. Its web was moored between two Banana Plants (Musa x paradisiaca L.) known throughout much of the Philippines as Saging, but in the local dialect, where I live, it is called Batag. Plant information - http://www.stuartxchange.org/Saging.html.........

Notes:

The web decoration of this young female is slightly unusual. The bottom right and top left "arms" are perfectly normal, but the bottm left arm is very close to the bottom right. I will try to keep an eye on this spider to see how her web decorations look in the next few days. Despite its unusual style, this decoration is called a Three-arm Discontinuous Cruciate Stabilimentum.