Tent Spider (mature female in web)

Description:

The colourful abdominal markings of this large spider make it reasonably easy to recognize. Although it technically belongs to the orb-web spiders (family Araneidae), Cyrtophora moluccensis does not build an orb web. Its tent-like, highly complex non-sticky web is sometimes considered a precursor of the simplified orb-web. It has a distinct dome with a central peak where the spiders hide and threads above and and below the dome. The spiders often live in loose colonies where the webs may not be joined, but are often built very close each other. The spiders mostly hang in the bottom of the web, upside down. Egg sacs are strung above the dome. The male is much smaller than the female. ♀ 24mm ♂ 8mm. The toxicity of this species is unknown although it is a very common species. It may have the potential to cause mild illness in humans but is not naturally aggressive so bitings by it are apparently quite rare.

Habitat:

Common in open woodland, parks and gardens in south east Queensland and coastal parts of Queensland, Northern Territory and northern Western Australia. They suspend themselves on a large web strung between tree branches; this web is extensive and three-dimensional and may appear tent-like so this species is also called a tent spider; sometimes individual webs are virtually continuous, making this species appear colonial.

Notes:

The (southern) summer of 2010/11 saw an explosion of Tent Spider numbers in my yard, not to mention other spider species as well. There had been considerable rain in the weeks leading up to summer which may have accounted for the increase in numbers. The views of the spider in this series are what most would see, and that's the spider in its web, suspended upside-down. A photo of the plant it was on is also included, and it's this plant that provides the colourful backdrop.