Table Of Content“Read no further – unless you are willing to fall in love with
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spiders. Submitting to the pages that follow could change
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your life.” – Tim Low, author of Where Song Began IE
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Australians have a love–hate relationship with spiders. Some spiders, such as G
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the Redback and the Sydney Funnelweb, inspire fear. Yet Peacock Spiders, A FIELD GUIDE TO
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with their colourful fan-spreading courtship dances, have won rapturous
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appreciation worldwide. T S P I D E R S
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A Field Guide to Spiders of Australia uses photographs of living animals to S
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help people identify many of the spiders they encounter. Featuring over I
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1,300 colour photographs, it is the most comprehensive account of E
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Australian spiders ever published. With more than two-thirds of Australian
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spiders yet to be scientifically described, this book sets the scene for future O OF AUSTR ALIA
explorations of our extraordinary Australian fauna. F
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R ROBERT WHYTE AND GREG ANDERSON
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About the authors
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Robert Whyte is an honorary researcher in arachnology at the Queensland e
Museum in Brisbane. He has participated in five Bush Blitz biodiscovery a
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expeditions in remote parts of Western Australia, the Northern Territory and d
Queensland. He is an accomplished editor, author and journalist. G
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Greg Anderson is a biomedical research scientist at the QIMR Berghofer g
Medical Research Institute in Brisbane. He has travelled extensively around A
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Australia and other parts of the world studying and photographing spiders. d
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Spiders Cover V77.indd 1 27/2/17 10:11 am
A FIELD GUIDE TO
S P I D E R S
OF AUSTRALIA
ROBERT WHYTE AND GREG ANDERSON
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© Robert Whyte and Greg Anderson 2017
All rights reserved. Except under the conditions described in the Australian Copyright Act 1968 and
subsequent amendments, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, duplicating
or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. Contact CSIRO Publishing for all
permission requests.
National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry
Whyte, Robert, 1955– author.
A field guide to spiders of Australia / Robert Whyte and Greg Anderson.
9780643107076 (paperback)
9780643107083 (epdf)
9780643107090 (epub)
Includes index.
Arachnida – Australia – Identification.
Spiders – Australia – Identification.
Spiders – Australia.
Spiders – Habitat – Australia.
Anderson, Greg, 1958– author.
Published by
CSIRO Publishing
Locked Bag 10
Clayton South VIC 3169
Australia
Telephone: +61 3 9545 8400
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.publish.csiro.au
Cover: top, left to right Argyrodes antipodianus, Malkara loricata, photos: greg anderson,
Maratus bubo photo: jürgen otto. Main image: Deinopis subrufa photo: robert whyte.
Title page: Maratus bubo photo: jürgen otto.
Set in Minion Pro (serif) and Myriad Pro (sans serif)
Cover, internal design and typesetting by Robert Whyte, ToadShow Pty Ltd
Printed in China by 1010 Printing International Ltd
CSIRO Publishing publishes and distributes scientific, technical and health science books, magazines and
journals from Australia to a worldwide audience and conducts these activities autonomously from the
research activities of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). The
views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent those of, and
should not be attributed to, the publisher or CSIRO. The copyright owner shall not be liable for technical or
other errors or omissions contained herein. The reader/user accepts all risks and responsibility for losses,
damages, costs and other consequences resulting directly or indirectly from using this information.
Original print edition:
The paper this book is printed on is in accordance with the
rules of the Forest Stewardship Council®. The FSC® promotes
environmentally responsible, socially beneficial and economically
viable management of the world’s forests.
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Contents
Foreword vi
Preface viii
Acknowledgements x
Introduction 1
From arachnophobia to arachnophilia 8 Orb-weavers p. 49
How to use this book 9
Determining species – everything helps, including genitals 18
Australia’s rich arachnological history 19
Parts of a spider – the need-to-know terms 21
Shortcuts to identification 22
Behaviour 23
Eyes 25
Spinnerets 28
Swift Spiders p. 127
Location 30
Webs 34
Burrows 36
Egg sacs 38
Leaf-curlers 42
Spider families from A to Z 45
Araneomorphae 47
Araneidae Orb-weavers 49
Araneinae Classic Orb-weavers 51
Araneus – a huge task of discovery and classification 58
Net-casting Spiders
Backobourkia – a true Aussie genus 65
Deinopidae p. 133
Cyclosa – a genus needing some serious attention 67
New discoveries in the west, with some shared 79
Argiopinae St Andrew’s Cross Spiders and allies 80
Cyrtarachninae Shiny Orb-weavers 87
Cyrtophorinae Tent-web Orb-weavers 91
Gasteracanthinae Spiny Orb-weavers 95
Mastophorinae Bolas Spiders and allies 99
Nephilinae Golden Orb-weavers 103
Kleptoparasites – who’s been stealing from my web? 109
Zygiellinae Leaf-curling Orb-weavers 111
Where did they come from and how did they get here? 113 House Spiders p. 137
Arkyidae Ambush-hunters 115
Variations galore – and they all look like poo 118
A case of convergence – ambush-hunters among flowers 121
Clubionidae Sac Spiders 123
Corinnidae Swift Spiders and Ant Mimics 127
Ticopa – a corinnid with an unusual biology 131
Deinopidae Net-casting Spiders 133
Desidae Intertidal and House Spiders 137
Eutichuridae Slender Sac Spiders 143
The problem of species, subspecies and forms 146
Slender Sac
Filistatidae Crevice Weavers 148
Spiders p. 143
iii
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CONTENTS
Gnaphosidae Ground Spiders 151
The gnaphosid genus Eilica – running with ants 153
Hersiliidae Two-tailed Spiders 157
Lamponidae White‐tailed Spiders 161
Linyphiidae Money Spiders 165
Lycosidae Wolf Spiders 171
Mimetidae Pirate Spiders 181
Miturgidae Prowling Spiders 185
Ground Spiders
Nicodamidae Red-and-black Spiders 193
Gnaphosidae p. 151
Oxyopidae Lynx Spiders 197
Pholcidae Daddy Long-legs Spiders 207
Pisauridae Fishing Spiders 213
Prodidomidae Long-spinneret Speedsters 219
Salticidae Jumping Spiders 223
Jumping Spider diversity – so many species, so little time 224
Is it an ant? Or is it an ant-mimicking Jumping Spider? 241
Peacock Spiders – tiny dancers going viral as video stars 257
When is a Maratus not a Maratus? This is the question. 275
Ant, ant, on the wall, who mimics you best of all? 279
White Tails p. 161
Calling all citizen scientists for project Opisthoncus 287
Extraordinary hunting strategies for a spider specialist 297
Separating Servaea species – DNA helps paint the picture 303
Scytodidae Spitting Spiders 308
Segestriidae Tube-web Spiders 310
Sparassidae Huntsman Spiders 313
Tetragnathidae Long-jawed Spiders 321
Theridiidae Comb-footed Spiders 329
The Redback Spider – an Australian now living overseas 339
Tiny forest jewels – spectacular Thwaitesia spiders 348
Prowlers p. 185 Thomisidae Crab Spiders 351
Notes on some recent name changes 352
A remarkable find – the missing male of a famous female 359
A spectacular ambush-hunter – Thomisus spectabilis 368
Trochanteriidae Unusual Flatties 372
Uloboridae Venomless Spiders 374
Zodariidae Ant-eating Spiders 376
Mygalomorphae 381
Actinopodidae Mouse Spiders 382
Barychelidae Brush-footed Trapdoor Spiders 384
Ctenizidae Saddle-legged Trapdoor Spiders 386
Jumpers p. 223
Dipluridae Curtain-web Spiders 387
Hexathelidae Australian Funnelweb Spiders 389
Idiopidae Spiny Trapdoor Spiders 394
Migidae Tree Trapdoor Spiders 399
Nemesiidae Wishbone Spiders 400
An expert’s eye view of a Wishbone Spider 403
Theraphosidae Australian Tarantulas 404
Redback Spider and
relatives p. 329
iv
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CONTENTS
Little-known spider families 406
Agelenidae Funnel Weavers 406
Amaurobiidae Hackled-mesh Weavers 407
Ammoxenidae Termite Hunters 408
Anapidae Tiny Orb-weavers 409
Anyphaenidae Seashore Spiders 410
Archaeidae Assassin Spiders 411
Austrochilidae Tasmanian Cave Spiders 412
Crab spiders p. 351
Cithaeronidae Cosmopolitan Spider Hunters 413
Cyatholipidae Tree Sheet-web Spiders 413
Ctenidae Wandering Spiders 415
Cycloctenidae Scuttling Spiders 416
Dictynidae Mesh-web Spiders 416
Dysderidae Woodlouse Hunters 417
Gallieniellidae Long-jawed Ground Spiders 417
Gradungulidae Long-claw Spiders 418
Hahniidae Comb‐tailed Spiders 419
Malkaridae Shield Spiders 420
Liocranidae Spiny‐legged Sac Spiders 422 Mouse Spiders p. 382
Mysmenidae Minute Litter Spiders 422
Nesticidae Cave Cobweb Spinners 423
Ochyroceratidae Midget Ground Weavers 423
Oecobiidae Midget House Spiders 423
Oonopidae Goblin Spiders 424
Orsolobidae Six-eyed Ground Spiders 425
Physoglenidae Hair-spike Synotaxids 426
Philodromidae Running Crab Spiders 427
Periegopidae Wide-clawed Spiders 428
Phrurolithidae Small Swift Spiders 428 Australian
Psechridae Lace-sheet Weavers 428 Funnelwebs p. 389
Selenopidae Flatties 429
Sicariidae Recluse Spiders 430
Symphytognathidae Dwarf Orb-weaving Spiders 431
Stenochilidae Diamond-headed Spiders 431
Stiphidiidae Platform Spiders 432
Tetrablemmidae Armoured Spiders 433
Theridiosomatidae Ray Spiders 433
Toxopidae Southern Hunting Spiders 434
Trachelidae Ground Sac Spiders 435
Spiny Trapdoor
Zoropsidae False Wolf Spiders 435
Spiders p. 394
Glossary 436
Photo credits 436
Readings 437
Index 438
Index of family common names 448
Spiders – family tree 450
Australian
Tarantulas p. 404
v
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Foreword
Read no further – unless you are willing to
fall in love with spiders. Submitting to the
pages that follow could change your life.
You will want to convert all your friends to a
love of spiders so that they can still be your
friends. This will be easily done because you
will have this book to show or give to them.
It consigns to the prejudice bin the silly idea
that a passion for invertebrates is uncool.
This book pulses with the gratitude felt by
two naturalist-scientists who have drawn
inspiration from those little scuttling things
many people recoil from.
As children most of us were taught
to dislike and fear spiders. I remember
the time after school I climbed high up a
mango tree to a ball of straw: a finch nest
in the leafy crown. I slid two fingers inside Tim Low is the author of Where Song Began, which
and felt the soft down of the chicks nestled explored the biogeography of Australian birds and
explained how northern hemisphere thinking had
within. When I withdrew my fingers a giant
skewed our understanding. Where Song Began
huntsman spider burst out and I realised became the first Australian nature book ever to win
I had been enjoying myself by fondling General Non-fiction Book of the Year.
a hairy spider. I recoiled from the idea,
but today I am wise enough to know that
spiders should be enjoyed in every possible
way. This book invites us all to do that.
I have known one of the authors for
more than 35 years. Robert Whyte showed
negligible interest in nature in his twenties.
This book shows how deeply and success-
fully he has embraced his life’s purpose. He
had the Queensland Museum’s curator of
spiders, Robert Raven, whom I have known
for even longer, as an excellent mentor.
This book shows us there is more to
spiders than we might think. There are
Peacock Spiders that outdo butterflies for
beauty. (That might seem an exaggeration,
but the photos show it is easily true.) Almost
as striking is the Christmas Jewel Spider,
and then there are the mating Long-jawed Austracantha minax Christmas Jewel Spider ♀ Fish
Spiders shown on page 320. There are River Station NT photo: robert whyte. ♀ 8 mm ♂ 4 mm
vi
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FOREWORD
all the spiders that practise mimicry, by colonies of up to 300. You have arrived as
imitating bird droppings, ants, flies, beetles a spider devotee when you can peel back
or parts of flowers. Some of them even bark and look with joy rather than unease
mimic different ant species at different upon a teeming mass of these.
stages of growth. The Green Tree Ant of the Birdwatchers carry binoculars as a matter
tropics has three different spider mimics, so of course and we should all be carrying
if imitation really is a form of flattery, that magnifying glasses so we can properly
ant must be full of conceit. There are other enjoy life at the small end of the spectrum.
spiders that look ordinary but do extraor- Butterflies win more praise than Peacock
dinary things. Fishing Spiders skate over and Jewel Spiders only because they are
the water and catch fish, and some spiders larger. This book is something we should
live entirely by thieving from other spiders. be carrying as well. The introductory
Australia’s Seashore Spiders have travelled chapters are loads of fun and the photos are
to New Zealand, presumably by travelling enchanting.
in crevices on floating logs. And then there Tim Low
are the flat Huntsman Spiders that live in
Maratus volans Flying Peacock Spider ♂ Sydney NSW Myrmarachne smaragdina Green Tree Ant Mimic
photo: jürgen otto. ♀ 6 mm ♂ 5 mm ♀ Darwin NT photo: greg anderson. ♀ 7 mm ♂ 6 mm
Left Amyciaea albomaculata Green Tree Ant Mimic juv from the Crab Spider family Thomisidae, Darwin NT.
Right Propostira sp. Green Tree Ant Mimic ♂ from the family Theridiidae, Daintree QLD photos: greg anderson.
“The Green Tree Ant of the tropics has three different spider mimics, so if imitation really is a form of flattery,
that ant must be full of conceit.” ♀ 7 mm ♂ 6 mm
vii
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Preface
In 2007 if there had already been a encountered araneomorphs, followed by
modern field guide to spiders with colour mygalomorphs, then finally a section of
photographs of nearly every common, little-known spiders. Early in the book is
beautiful, intriguing and important a section on shortcuts to identify obvious
Australian spider, this project would not groups (see page 22).
have been started. There were top-quality The content is limited to spiders. This
spider field guides from Singapore, Hong was to maximise space so as to be able to
Kong, Japan and Korea and New Zealand, include as many species as possible. There
but no comprehensive and accurate modern are over 1,300 images in this book, many of
field guide for Australia. them representing new discoveries not yet
So we began to write what we wished was scientifically described.
in the book stores. It was a daunting task. The taxonomy of spiders is a movable
From the outset the aim was to produce feast, or perhaps a smörgåsbord of delights,
a popular, practical field guide with with so much on offer it may be hard to
high-quality photos of live spiders in know where to begin or how to make sense
natural settings. With a general audience of it all. Thanks to recent major changes to
in mind, the book was consciously written the classification of spiders at the family
in everyday language. Technical terms level, notably by Ramirez in 2014, Dimitrov
have been avoided or, in cases where this and colleagues in 2016 and Wheeler in 2017
was not possible, they have been accompa- we can direct readers to a chart showing a
nied by explanations. For example, if the family tree of spiders on page 450.
term tarsus is mentioned it is followed Different people will undoubtedly read
by its explanation (final or outermost leg the book in different ways. Some might
segment). start with the index looking for a particular
Perhaps the most important scientific rarity, thinking, I wonder if they have got
terms with no practical alternatives are Spiderosus suchandsuchus? Imagine their
Araneomorphae, meaning spiders with delight when they find Spiderosus suchand-
fangs inward pointing and two lungs; and suchus in the index with a bold page
Mygalomorphae, meaning spiders with number, meaning not only is it mentioned,
parallel directed fangs and four lungs. The it also has an image. Others might flick
word cephalothorax (the fused head and through the photos or go to a favourite
chest segment characteristic of spiders) group, for example the stunningly beautiful
and carapace (the upper part of this) might Peacock Spiders.
also occasionally appear without explana- Whichever way you choose to explore
tion. These and other crucial terms are in its contents, this book will have made
the glossary. substantial progress towards achieving its
All A ustralian families are included, aims if it has expanded your knowledge,
arranged alphabetically in three large reduced your fears and encouraged you to
groups, starting with the most commonly look more closely at spiders.
viii
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PREFACE
Runcinia acuminata Pointy Runcinia ♀ with Robber Fly prey, Bunya QLD
photo: nick monaghan www.lifeunseen.com. ♀ 10 mm ♂ 6 mm
ix
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