Araneus mitificus
Encyclopedia
Araneus mitificus, commonly known as the kidney garden spider or pale orb weaver, is a species of orb-weaver spider
found in South
, East
, and Southeast Asia
.
Araneus
. It is classified under the subfamily Araneinae of the orb-weaver spider family
Araneidae
. They are members of the superfamily
of eight-eyed spiders Araneoidea
of the suborder Araneomorphae
. The species was originally described in 1886 as Epeira mitifica by the French
arachnologist Eugène Simon
.
. The females grow up to 6 to 9 mm (0.236220472440945 to 0.354330708661417 in). Males are smaller, reaching only 3 millimetre, and are generally less colorful than the females.
Their abdomen
s are globular and covered with fine hair. They slope abruptly from the mid-region to the posterior. Two small but distinct tubercle
s are present at the rear end. The dorsal surface is covered with white and black patterns that can vary considerably. The front edge usually has a wide black band. In the upper center is a characteristic large kidney-shaped marking (which can sometimes be a faint vertical line or V-shaped), from which it derives its common name
. Immediately below it are two small but prominent black pits (fovea). At the posterior half is a series of faint transverse ridges. The markings on the back of the spider can resemble a human face if viewed from the front.
The ventral side of the abdomen is a uniform green. The epigyne
s of the females have unwrinkled, very short and thick scape
s.
The cephalothorax
is reddish, yellowish, or green in color. It is narrower at the front than at the back and also covered with fine pubescence. The sternum
is heart-shaped, narrowing towards the back. It is covered with long, black, spine-like hairs. They have eight eyes arranged in two recurved rows. The front row of eyes are larger and more recurved than the back row. Dark rings encircle the pair of central back eyes and the lateral eyes are close together and mounted on black tubercles.
The labium is wider than it is long and yellowish. The maxilla
e have almost square shapes and have distinct tufts of hair at the tips (scopulae). The chelicerae
and pedipalp
s are also yellowish to brownish in color.
The legs are moderately strong and long. They are reddish, yellowish, pale green, to brownish in color. The distal ends of the leg segments have transverse bands dark brown in color. They are covered with long black spines and fine hairs. Its leg formula is 1-2-4-3, with the first pair the longest, and the third pair the shortest.
, East
, and Southeast Asia
; west from Pakistan
and India
, north towards China
and Japan
, and south towards the Philippines
and Papua New Guinea
.
They are common in gardens and low vegetation. They often build their webs among bushes.
Males also build orb webs, often near the webs of females. Their webs are usually smaller.
Orb-weaver spider
The "typical" orb-weaver spiders are the most common group of builders of spiral wheel-shaped webs often found in gardens, fields and forests...
found in South
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
, East
East Asia
East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
, and Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
.
Taxonomy
Araneus mitificus belongs to the genusGenus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Araneus
Araneus
Araneus is a genus of common orb-weaving spiders. It includes about 650 species, among which are the European garden spider and the barn spider.-Description:...
. It is classified under the subfamily Araneinae of the orb-weaver spider family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Araneidae
Orb-weaver spider
The "typical" orb-weaver spiders are the most common group of builders of spiral wheel-shaped webs often found in gardens, fields and forests...
. They are members of the superfamily
Superfamily
The term superfamily is used to describe several different concepts in different scientific fields:* Superfamily and Superfamily : a level of biological classification; redirects to Taxonomic rank...
of eight-eyed spiders Araneoidea
Araneoidea
The Araneoidea are a superfamily of araneomorph spiders. They contain families of eight-eyed spiders:* Anapidae* Araneidae* Cyatholipidae* Linyphiidae* Mysmenidae* Nephilidae* Nesticidae* Pimoidae* Sinopimoidae* Symphytognathidae* Synaphridae...
of the suborder Araneomorphae
Araneomorphae
The Araneomorphae are a suborder of spiders. They are distinguished by having fangs that oppose each other and cross in a pinching action, in contrast to the Mygalomorphae , which have fangs that are nearly parallel in alignment.- Distinguishing characteristics :Note the difference in the...
. The species was originally described in 1886 as Epeira mitifica by the French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
arachnologist Eugène Simon
Eugène Simon
Eugène Simon was a French arachnologist. His many taxonomic contributions include categorizing and naming many spiders, as well as creating genera such as Anelosimus, Psellocoptus and Phlogius....
.
Description
Araneus mitificus are small spiders and exhibit sexual dimorphismSexual dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is a phenotypic difference between males and females of the same species. Examples of such differences include differences in morphology, ornamentation, and behavior.-Examples:-Ornamentation / coloration:...
. The females grow up to 6 to 9 mm (0.236220472440945 to 0.354330708661417 in). Males are smaller, reaching only 3 millimetre, and are generally less colorful than the females.
Their abdomen
Abdomen
In vertebrates such as mammals the abdomen constitutes the part of the body between the thorax and pelvis. The region enclosed by the abdomen is termed the abdominal cavity...
s are globular and covered with fine hair. They slope abruptly from the mid-region to the posterior. Two small but distinct tubercle
Tubercle
A tubercle is generally a wart-like projection, but it has slightly different meaning depending on which family of plants or animals it is used to refer to....
s are present at the rear end. The dorsal surface is covered with white and black patterns that can vary considerably. The front edge usually has a wide black band. In the upper center is a characteristic large kidney-shaped marking (which can sometimes be a faint vertical line or V-shaped), from which it derives its common name
Common name
A common name of a taxon or organism is a name in general use within a community; it is often contrasted with the scientific name for the same organism...
. Immediately below it are two small but prominent black pits (fovea). At the posterior half is a series of faint transverse ridges. The markings on the back of the spider can resemble a human face if viewed from the front.
The ventral side of the abdomen is a uniform green. The epigyne
Epigyne
The epigyne or epigynum is the external genital structure of female spiders. As the epigyne varies greatly in form in different species, even in closely related ones, it often provides the most distinctive characteristic for recognizing species...
s of the females have unwrinkled, very short and thick scape
Scape
In biology, the term scape may refer to:* The first segment of an insect antenna* A finger-like appendage of the epigyne of a female spider* Scape , a flowering stemScape may also refer to:...
s.
The cephalothorax
Cephalothorax
The cephalothorax is a tagma of various arthropods, comprising the head and the thorax fused together, as distinct from the abdomen behind. The word cephalothorax is derived from the Greek words for head and thorax...
is reddish, yellowish, or green in color. It is narrower at the front than at the back and also covered with fine pubescence. The sternum
Sternum
The sternum or breastbone is a long flat bony plate shaped like a capital "T" located anteriorly to the heart in the center of the thorax...
is heart-shaped, narrowing towards the back. It is covered with long, black, spine-like hairs. They have eight eyes arranged in two recurved rows. The front row of eyes are larger and more recurved than the back row. Dark rings encircle the pair of central back eyes and the lateral eyes are close together and mounted on black tubercles.
The labium is wider than it is long and yellowish. The maxilla
Maxilla (arthropod)
In arthropods, the maxillae are paired structures present on the head as mouthparts in members of the clade Mandibulata, used for tasting and manipulating food. Embryologically, the maxillae are derived from the 4th and 5th segment of the head and the maxillary palps; segmented appendages extending...
e have almost square shapes and have distinct tufts of hair at the tips (scopulae). The chelicerae
Chelicerae
The chelicerae are mouthparts of the Chelicerata, an arthropod subphylum that includes arachnids, Merostomata , and Pycnogonida . Chelicerae are pointed appendages which are used to grasp food, and are found in place of the chewing mandibles most other arthropods have...
and pedipalp
Pedipalp
Pedipalps , are the second pair of appendages of the prosoma in the subphylum Chelicerata. They are traditionally thought to be homologous with mandibles in Crustacea and insects, although more recent studies Pedipalps (commonly shortened to palps or palpi), are the second pair of appendages of the...
s are also yellowish to brownish in color.
The legs are moderately strong and long. They are reddish, yellowish, pale green, to brownish in color. The distal ends of the leg segments have transverse bands dark brown in color. They are covered with long black spines and fine hairs. Its leg formula is 1-2-4-3, with the first pair the longest, and the third pair the shortest.
Distribution and habitat
Araneus mitificus are found in SouthSouth Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
, East
East Asia
East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
, and Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
; west from Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, north towards China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, and south towards the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
.
They are common in gardens and low vegetation. They often build their webs among bushes.
Behavior
Araneus mitificus builds orb webs that are characteristically missing a section. The spider does not rest on the center of the web, but instead builds a silk-lined sanctuary in a leaf at the margins. The leaf is bent at the edges and roofed with a mesh of silk. If a prey animal becomes entangled in the web, the vibrations from its struggle travel to the center of the web, then along a single long strand of silk (the signal line) positioned in the empty section. The strand is linked to the hidden spider. Once the spider feels the signal line vibrate, it will rush out to capture the prey.Males also build orb webs, often near the webs of females. Their webs are usually smaller.
See also
- Zygiella x-notataZygiella x-notataZygiella x-notata is a spider in the family Araneidae.-Description:Z. x-notata females are up to 11mm in size, males up to 7mm. The prosoma is yellow-brown, with a leaf-like mark on the opisthosoma. In moderate climate, adults appear from July to October, sometimes even into December...
- Araneus quadratusAraneus quadratusThe four-spot orb-weaver is a common orb-weaver spider found in Europe and Asia. Females can reach 17 mm in length, especially when gravid, males approximately half that. They are quite variable in appearance, ranging from brown to bright orange or green, but they always have the...
- Araneus diadematus
- List of Araneidae species
- Orb-weaver spiderOrb-weaver spiderThe "typical" orb-weaver spiders are the most common group of builders of spiral wheel-shaped webs often found in gardens, fields and forests...
Further reading
- Simon, E. 1886. Arachnides recuellis par M. A. Pavie (sous chef du service des postes au Cambodge) dans le royaume de Siam, au Cambodge et en Cochinchine. Actes de la Société Linnéenne de Bordeaux 40: 150.
- Platnick, N. I. 2008. The World Spider Catalog, version 9.0. American Museum of Natural History.
External links
- Video of an Araneus mitificus showing the pulsing of its heartbeat along the cardiac marks.
- Detailed drawings of body parts from the Encyclopedia of LifeEncyclopedia of LifeThe Encyclopedia of Life is a free, online collaborative encyclopedia intended to document all of the 1.9 million living species known to science. It is compiled from existing databases and from contributions by experts and non-experts throughout the world...
China.