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Project Noah Nature School
Phrynarachne sp.
My 150th spotting :) I am a pathfinder now :) Had an amazing ride in Noah :) The body markings and texture of this spider provide some camouflage by mimicking the appearance of bird dung. This species of spider weaves simple inverted triangle shaped webs across plant leaves and stems. When a fly lands on the web, the line it is stuck to breaks at the outer end and falls, leaving the victim to hang vertically from the mid-line of the web.
Bird dung crab spiders recognized under the genus Phrynarachne are very rare in the group...Only 30 species are recognized as such spiders out of 41.253 species of spiders known globally. In India, they are known by only two endemic species namely P. tuberosa and P. peeliana
It sometimes sits on a small patch of white silk, which can be mistaken for the white stain caused by the bird-dung when it is splashed on the leaf. Some Phyrnarachne spiders emit a pronounced smell of faeces or urine. The sight and smell of bird-dropping may be a clever device to attract and ambush flies.
Great capture Adarsha,congrats on the well deserved SOTD and thanks for sharing
Belated congratulations on spotting of the day! Splendid series of an amazing spider!
Thank you so much Tiz :)
I am glad to spot this on 150 th (Though i waited till 150th to post to post this)..
I got some excellent fellows in my native during this week trip to my village...
All are coming soon :)
A big congratulations for this fantastic spotting and the Pathfinder patch! Beautiful pictures and an interesting specimen! I think this spotting made many people more qurious about all the mimicking animals out there! I am looking forward to see more spottings from you and India :)
Tina
And thank you so much Carol and Sergio :) I m glad you loved it :)
(Comments are scrambled i guess) :P
Spotted on Jul 1, 2013
Submitted on Jul 11, 2013
