Arachnid - Spider

Ground dwelling hunters. Males are attracted by scent markings left by the female. The female carries her egg sac underneath her abdomen until the spiderlings hatch. May live for up to two years.

During daylight hours In summer, males leave their web and wander in search of females. The egg case looks woolly and is held in the web. The web consists of a few strands built under bark, stones or logs.

Feeds at night, catching its prey by waiting for an insect to 'trip' the silken threads outside the burrow. It then rushes out to grab its prey. Despite its common name, the entrance of this spider's burrow does not have a 'trap-door'. Trap-door spiders can live up to 20 years.

Eggs are held in a flattened circular egg sac made of papery white silk. The spiderlings do not disperse but stay and grow within the colony. They usually live for one or two seasons.

Females mature in approximately four months and can live for 2-3 years. The smaller male matures in about 90 days and lives for 6-7 months. The round egg sacs are 1 cm wide, suspended within the web. They are woolly and white, turning brown over time. Each egg sac contains approximately 250 eggs. Spiderlings are cannibalistic and will eat unhatched eggs and other spiderlings.

Nocturnal. Female Garden Orb-weavers live about twelve months. Eggs are laid late summer-autumn and the female usually dies by early winter. The egg case is a fluffy silken cocoon attached to foliage. The spiderlings hatch and disperse during autumn to build their own tiny orb webs among vegetation. During spring the spiderlings develop more quickly and mature during summer.

The female spider stays in her web, never leaving it and always repairing it (so old webs can look grey and woolly due to the added silk). Several white silk egg sacs are held within her web for protection. When the spiderlings hatch they disperse. The spiders mature during summer and live for about two years.

Feeds at night, using mimicry to capture its prey. It hangs from the edge of a leaf or twig on a short silk thread, with its forelegs stretched out. It releases a chemical scent (pheromone) that mimics the scent released by female moths to attract their mates. If male moths attracted by the spider's mimicking scent flutter close enough they are grabbed by the spider's strong front legs. The egg sacs are marbled brown coloured balls, about 12-14 mm wide, each holding more than 200 eggs. Up to 13 sacs are joined together in a group.

Nocturnal. Builds a silky retreat under bark for moulting and laying eggs. The egg sac is a flattish silken capsule which is aggressively guarded by the female.