Argiope argentata

Argiope argentata
In California
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Order:	Araneae
Infraorder:	Araneomorphae
Family:	Araneidae
Genus:	Argiope
Species:	A. argentata
Binomial name
Argiope argentata (Fabricius, 1775)[1]
Synonyms[1]
Aranea argentata Fabricius, 1775 Aranea mammeata De Geer, 1778 Aranea mammata Olivier, 1789 Epeira mammata (Olivier, 1789) Argyopes argentatus (Fabricius, 1775) Argyopes fenestrinus C. L. Koch, 1838 Epeira argentata (Fabricius, 1775) Epeira amictoria Walckenaer, 1841 Plectana sloanii Walckenaer, 1841 Epeira gracilis Keyserling, 1865 Argiope carinata L. Koch, 1871 Argyopes maronicus Taczanowski, 1873 Argyopes subtilis Taczanowski, 1873 Acrosoma sloanii (Walckenaer, 1841) Argyopes hirtus Taczanowski, 1879 Argiope waughi Simon, 1896 Araneus gracilis (Keyserling, 1865) Micrathena sloanei Petrunkevitch, 1911 Gea panamensis Chamberlin, 1917 Argiope argyrea Badcock, 1932 Argiope cuyunii Hingston, 1932 Argiope filiargentata Hingston, 1932 Argiope filinfracta Hingston, 1932 Micrathena sloani Mello-Leitão, 1932 Singa gracilis (Keyserling, 1865) Aranea gracilenta Roewer, 1942 Argiope indistincta Mello-Leitão, 1944 Argiope hirta (Taczanowski, 1879)

Argiope argentata is a species of spider in the family Araneidae (orb-weavers), found from the United States south to Chile and Argentina.^[1] It is a member of the Argiope genus and is also known as the silver argiope.

Description

As with most members of the Argiope genus the female of the species tends to be much larger than the male. The body of Argiope argentata tends to be primarily silver with brown and orange colorations further back on the abdomen on the top, with a primarily brown underbelly. The legs have bands of orange, black and silver. The female can be up to 35 mm in length whereas the male tends to be 20 mm or less.

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  In California

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  In Jamaica

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  With victim (a bush cricket)
  In Jamaica

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  In the Galápagos Islands

Location

The range of Argiope argentata extends from the USA in the north (from southern California to Florida) as far as Argentina in the south, although it prefers warmer, dryer areas. They can often be found on prickly pears in the fall.

Bite

The bite may sting and itch for about an hour, after which the pain usually passes away without serious after effects. However, the effect on small children, seniors and people in a poor state of health may be more serious.

References

• SDNHM - San Diego Natural History Museum - pictures and descriptions
• UCI - University of California Irvine, Biology - good pictures

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Argiope argentata.

External links

Wikispecies has information related to: Argiope argentata

• Picture of Argiope argentata (free for noncommercial use)