| Dolomedes minor | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Female guarding nursery web | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Dolomedidae |
| Genus: | Dolomedes |
| Species: | D. minor |
| Binomial name | |
| Dolomedes minor | |
Dolomedes minor is a spider in the family Dolomedidae that is endemic to New Zealand, [1] where it is known as the nursery web spider.
Dolomedes minor is pale brown to grey, like the rocks around which they live, helping to camouflage them against predators. [2] The spider has large pedipalps, which are usually used for sensory purposes. The female D. minor can easily be identified based on the position of the epigyne on the underside of the abdomen. They possess large chelicerae, which are located just below the eyes. [3] The spider has a body length of about 18 mm. The females are almost twice the size of the males. They move very fast and possess a long leg-span: over sixty millimeters for a fully grown female.
D. minor is found in a variety of habitats throughout New Zealand. They survive in a variety of terrains, from sea level up to subalpine areas, including shrubland containing Gorse (Ulex europaeus) and Manuka (Leptospermum scoparium), swamps and grasslands. When hunting, they can be seen waiting around the water's edge and active amongst the stones, although they are nocturnal hunters. [4] The spider is noticeable in these areas due to the large white nests thickly webbed to the ends of plants throughout these regions. [5] Females will usually remain with their young in these habitats once their nursery webs have been constructed.
D. minor are most commonly seen through the summer months from November to May. [6] Over these months the females have been found with egg-sacs attached to them which are carried for at least 5 weeks beneath the spider in their chelicerae. After this the female will start to construct her nursery web, which is not made to catch prey but to ‘nurse’ young. This is made at night and built at and amongst the tips of foliage. It can be around 6 inches (150 mm) or more in length. At night the females guard the web and during the day have been noted to move towards the base of the vegetation. [7] The spiderlings will emerge shortly after the web's construction, usually within a week or after they have moulted, and after two weeks most young leave the nest. It is presumed this is done by ‘ballooning’, a type of air dispersal to allow them to leave the nest. There has been sightings of adult males with young adult females, but no courtship or mating has been recorded. In other Dolomedes species, sexual cannibalism is high so it is possible that D. minor males will try mate with virgin females to avoid this. Hurried copulation has also been found to be common in other Dolomedes species.
As a nocturnal species, D. minor hunts and scavenges for food at night. The prey spectrum of the spider consists of a variety of small organisms including locusts, other spiders, dobsonfly larvae, earthworms, bees and other small insects. [8] Although D. minor is an effective hunter, previously deceased organisms will also be accepted as food. The spider does not use its web at any point during predation, but rather captures prey through methods of hunting. The spider tends to take a passive approach to hunting however, waiting for prey to make contact with it before attacking. Despite having four prominent posterior eyes, D. minor relies entirely on touch and chemical perception rather than sight in the detection of prey. These senses are facilitated by hair sensilla on the spiders body that allow them to detect and capture prey with no reliance on sight. A particular feeding behaviour exhibited by D. minor is the rapid consumption of prey when it is available. Individuals of the species have been observed capturing additional prey whilst still feeding on previously taken organisms, as well as commonly capturing and holding multiple insects at a time. This behaviour is thought to have a direct correlation with the nocturnal instinct of D. minor, with the need for rapid consumption stemming from the limited availability of prey at night. The number of active insects decreases rapidly after twilight and remains limited until a spike before dawn, this leaves the spiders with only small windows of time in which to capture sufficient prey to nourish themselves. Individuals of D. minor are parasitised by two species of spider wasps, Cryptocheilus australis and Sphictostethus nitidus . [9]
Under the New Zealand Threat Classification System, this species is listed as "Not Threatened". [10]
Dolomedes is a genus of large spiders of the family Dolomedidae. They are also known as fishing spiders, raft spiders, dock spiders or wharf spiders. Almost all Dolomedes species are semiaquatic, with the exception of the tree-dwelling D. albineus of the southeastern United States. Many species have a striking pale stripe down each side of the body.
The raft spider, scientific name Dolomedes fimbriatus, is a large semi-aquatic spider of the family Dolomedidae found throughout north-western and central Europe. It is one of only two species of the genus Dolomedes found in Europe, the other being the slightly larger Dolomedesplantarius which is endangered in the UK.
Portia labiata is a jumping spider found in Sri Lanka, India, southern China, Burma (Myanmar), Malaysia, Singapore, Java, Sumatra and the Philippines. In this medium-sized jumping spider, the front part is orange-brown and the back part is brownish. The conspicuous main eyes provide vision more acute than a cat's during the day and 10 times more acute than a dragonfly's, and this is essential in P. labiata′s navigation, hunting and mating.
The nursery web spider Pisaura mirabilis is a spider species of the family Pisauridae.
Phryganoporus candidus, also known as the foliage web spider, is a small, subsocial jumping spider endemic to Australia. On average, they are 6–10 mm long and are a mottled brown colour, covered in silvery grey hair. They typically reside in arid and semi-arid locations, building their nests in various trees, bushes, and other plant-life. They have a mutualistic relationship with Acacia ligulata, and therefore prefer to build their nests in these trees.
Spider behavior refers to the range of behaviors and activities performed by spiders. Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms which is reflected in their large diversity of behavior.
Porrhothele antipodiana, the black tunnelweb spider, is a species of mygalomorph spider that lives in New Zealand. It is the most common and widespread of several species in the genus Porrhothele, and is especially common in the greater Wellington region where the vagrant mature males are often encountered in or around dwellings. This species is one of New Zealand's most studied spiders. In New Zealand, the common name "tunnelweb spider" is also often used to refer to members of the genus Hexathele. Neither should be confused with their distant relatives, the highly venomous Australian funnel-web spiders.
Dolomedes aquaticus is a species of fishing spider that lives and hunts along the gravel banks of unforested New Zealand rivers. It prefer open riverbanks where it typically lives under rocks, usually less than 5 metres away from the river. Its colouring allows it to camouflage against river stones. Normally nocturnal, it will sit and wait for prey after dark, and can survive for short periods under the water.
Trite planiceps, commonly known as the black-headed jumping spider, is a common jumping spider (Salticidae) endemic to New Zealand and one of about 150 species of jumping spiders in New Zealand.
Dolomedes tenebrosus, known as the dark fishing spider, is a species of fishing spider found in the United States and Canada.
The six-spotted fishing spider is a species of spider in the family Dolomedidae. Found in wetland habitats throughout North America, these spiders are usually seen scampering along the surface of ponds and other bodies of water. They are also referred to as dock spiders because they can sometimes be witnessed quickly vanishing through the cracks of boat docks. D. triton gets its scientific name from the Greek mythological god Triton, who is the messenger of the big sea and the son of Poseidon.
New Zealand has 1157 described spider species, with an estimated total fauna of 2000 species. Over 97 per cent are endemic, and the rest have been introduced through human activities or were natural wind-borne introductions.
Portia fimbriata, sometimes called the fringed jumping spider, is a jumping spider found in Australia and Southeast Asia. Adult females have bodies 6.8 to 10.5 millimetres long, while those of adult males are 5.2 to 6.5 millimetres long. Both sexes have a generally dark brown carapace, reddish brown chelicerae ("fangs"), a brown underside, dark brown palps with white hairs, and dark brown abdomens with white spots on the upper side. Both sexes have fine, faint markings and soft fringes of hair, and the legs are spindly and fringed. However, specimens from New Guinea and Indonesia have orange-brown carapaces and yellowish abdomens. In all species of the genus Portia, the abdomen distends when the spider is well fed or producing eggs.
Pisaurina mira, also known as the American nursery web spider, due to the web it raises young in, is a species of spider in the family Pisauridae. They are often mistaken for wolf spiders (Lycosidae) due to their physical resemblance. P. mira is distinguished by its unique eye arrangement of two rows.
Tigrosa helluo, commonly known as the Wetland Giant Wolf Spider, is a species of spider belonging to the family Lycosidae, also known as wolf spiders. T. helluo was formerly known as Hogna helluo before differences between dorsal color patterns, habitat preferences, body structures, etc. were discovered. The species is native to the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It can be found across the eastern half of the United States, primarily in the Northeast and New England, and as far west as Nebraska and Kansas. T. helluo can be found in diverse habitats including woods, marshes, fields, and riparian areas. Typically, members of this species prefer to live in wetter areas as opposed to dry environments. Males tend to live for around a year and females will live for close to two years.
Dolomedes schauinslandi or the Rangatira spider is a large spider of the family Dolomedidae. It is only found on South East Island (Rangatira), Houruakopara and Mangere Islands in the Chatham Islands, New Zealand. It is one of New Zealand's largest and rarest spiders.
Periegops suterii is a species of spider in the genus Periegops that is endemic to the South Island of New Zealand.
Periegops keani is a species of spider in the genus Periegops that is endemic to the North Island of New Zealand.
Latrodectus revivensis, also known as the desert widow, is a species of venomous spider belonging to the Latrodectus genus and located in the Negev desert and the Arava valley (Arabah).
Dolomedes dondalei is a species of large fishing spider endemic to the main islands of New Zealand. It is a nocturnal hunter, feeling the water surface for vibrations, and catches insects and even small fishes – the only New Zealand Dolomedes species able to do so.
