Nephila plumipes

Nephila plumipes
Female Nephila plumipes eating a ladybird, with male in attendance
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Suborder: Araneomorphae
Family: Nephilidae
Genus: Nephila
Species: N. plumipes
Binomial name
Nephila plumipes
(Latreille, 1804)

Nephila plumipes is a species of spider found in Australia, Indonesia and some Pacific Islands, which exhibits extreme sexual dimorphism. It is sometimes called the Tiger Spider due to its markings which look similar to a tiger. This species has historically been confused with Nephila clavipes, with the main distinguishing visual difference being significantly smaller black hair tufts on the legs. As with other spiders from the Nephila genus, they have a distinctive golden web.

Studies have shown that the orb-weaving spider grows bigger and can produce more eggs in highly urbanised places due to more food being available, warmer temperatures, fewer predators such as birds, and no pesticide chemicals. These spiders are commonly found in both urban and natural landscapes.[1]

References

  1. ↑ Australian Geographic (August 2014). "Spiders in the city are bigger".
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