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– WildlifeCampus Game Ranging/Field Guiding Course
Module # 2-Component # 4
Spiders
Objective
To achieve an understanding of the order Araneae within the class Arachnida.
Expected outcome
Recognise all spiders based on their external anatomy.

Gain insight into their general anatomy and physiology.
Become familiar with the different ecologies of spiders.
Spiders © Copyright
This course material is the copyrighted intellectual property of WildlifeCampus. It may not be copied, distributed, or
reproduced in any format whatsoever without the express written permission of WildlifeCampus
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Spiders (order: Araneae)

According to World Spider Catalog, as of 2021, at least 49 652 spider species and 120
families have been recorded by taxonomists. In a similar scenario as ticks and mites
(component # 3), this number probably only represents a portion of their number, the
majority remaining undiscovered. Spider populations may be extraordinarily large.
One scientific study estimated that in an undisturbed acre of grassland, meadow or
forest, there might be upward of 2 million individuals. In Africa, spiders have been
divided up taxonomically into 2 suborders: the Mygalomorphae and the
Araneomorphae.
Spider classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Suborder: Mygalomorphae
Suborder: Araneomorphae
Mygalomorph species are usually large, primitive free-living spiders. All have 4 lungs
and paraxial chelicerae that move vertically parallel to the body's long axis. They,
therefore, deliver a 'stabbing' bite.
Araneomorph species are usually web-spinning species. They have only 2 lungs, and
their chelicerae move at right angles to the body's long axis. Their diaxial chelicerae
deliver a 'pinching' bite. Some survival strategies in which spiders have evolved are
examined here.
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Spider characteristics
8 legs.
2 body parts (cephalothorax and abdomen).
No wings in any species.
Mostly carnivorous.
Metamorphosis is incomplete.
Usually have 8 simple eyes.
Respiration with book lungs.
Have silk glands and spinnerets (although not all spin webs to catch prey).
Have venom glands (all, except 2 small families).
Summary of the differences between Araneomorphs and Mygalomorphs:
Araneomorphs Mygalomorphs
1 pair of book lungs 2 pairs of book lungs
Sideways striking chelicerae (diaxial) Downward striking chelicerae (paraxial)
Web dwelling Ground dwelling
Less primitive More primitive
Luke Kemp
Stone huntsman spider-Genus: Eusparassus
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Spider anatomy
External anatomy
Basic characteristics of arachnids include 4 pairs of legs (1) and a body divided into 2
segments: the cephalothorax (2) and the abdomen (3).
1 2 3
Scorpion spider-Family: Trochanteriidae
Other names: Skerpioenspinnekop
Classification: HARMLESS
A strange-looking spider. Flattened, usually black with orange legs. They are wanderers
and do not build webs. There are 9 species in South Africa. They can be found under
the bark of trees or stones and pot plants. They are secretive and escape as quickly as
they can when encountered. They are harmless to humans and pets. Source:
www.africansnakebiteinstitute.com
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Eyes
Chelicera
Fangs of
Chelicera
Close up of a wolf spider showing the eyes, chelicera, and fangs
Other names: Wolfspinnekop
These spiders are prevalent in the garden and occasionally come into the house. They
are usually smaller than a R5 coin. The wolf spider is grey to brown, usually with a pale
stripe down the back bordered with 2 darker stripes. They can be found hiding under
plant debris and rocks. They are free-living or found in open tube silk burrows. They are
harmless to humans and pets and seldom attempt to bite. Source:
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The underside and head of a spider showing the external anatomy

Image: James Henry Emerton
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Special adaptations of spider 'feet'
Some spiders can walk up surfaces such as smooth glass and will not fall off. This is
thanks to 'scopulae', pad-like tufts of hairs on their tarsi (the 'feet' or final leg segments
furthest from the body). Spiders who live on webs or have evolved from web-living
ancestors lack these tufts of hair. Most hunting spiders, including wolf spiders, have
scopulae. Under a high-powered microscope, one can see how the tips of these hairs
spread out like tiny brushes into thousands of fine 'end feet'. This results in each hair
having thousands of contact points.
Some spiders can even walk on surfaces that are covered in a thin layer of water.
When a solid comes into contact with a liquid, a mechanical force called 'capillary
force' causes physical adhesion between the smooth surface and the thousands of
end feet. If there is no film of water, e.g. Teflon-coated surfaces, even spiders with
scopulae will slide. Some spiders, such as baboon spiders and jumping spiders, rely on
the strength of their legs to hold and subdue prey, have even more of these hairs. Their
scopulae often extend to the next leg segment, the metatarsus.
End feet
Close up of the end feet of a tarantula
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Respiration in spiders
Spiders have 2 kinds of respiratory systems:
1. Book lungs, which open on the underside of the abdomen.

2. 1 or 2 pairs of tubular tracheae (air tubes), which branch throughout the body and
open to the outside through stigmata or spiracles.
Most spiders have 1 pair of book lungs and tracheae, some have no lungs, and the
mygalomorphs have 2 pairs of book lungs and no tracheae.
Book lungs consist of thin plates of permeable cuticles. Gas exchange occurs
between the air on one side of each plate and the haemolymph (invertebrate 'blood')
on the other side. The tracheae lead air to various body parts, where gas exchange
occurs through the thin walls at the end of the tracheae. Spiders that spend time
underwater are covered in a thick layer of hairs that can trap an air bubble, acting as
an external 'lung', enabling them to breathe underwater.
Diagram of spider book lungs

(1) lung slit, (2) space filled with blood, (3) leaves of the book lung.
John Henry Comstock-from the 1920 edition of The Spider Book, published by
Doubleday, Page and Company in the United States (originally published in 1912)
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Circulation in spiders
Spiders have an open circulatory system, where the blood vessels transport
haemolymph to certain areas of the body, but then it flows freely in open areas
between the organs. Unlike mammal blood, the haemolymph of spiders is clear. The
tubular hearts of spiders are long, muscular organs situated in the upper part of the
abdomen to the back. This 'open tube' heart is known as a pericardial sinus, and it has
valves that force blood to flow in 1 direction only.
Spiders lack veins to carry oxygen-poor haemolymph back to their heart. It is simply
pulled back to the heart through the pen body cavity because of the heart's pumping
action. Non-return valves in the abdomen prevent back-flow. The heart has its own
nerve centre and functions independently from the brain. However, there is a link
between them, and the heart tube can react to information from the brain.
The internal anatomy of a female 2-lunged spider. (Ryan Wilson)-Anatomical

information and original diagram from The Spider Book (1912, 1920) by John Henry
Comstock.
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Silk and spinnerets

The silk spinning apparatus of spiders is known as spinnerets. Paired spinnerets
(araneomorphs usually have 3 pairs, while mygalomorphs have 2) are situated at the
end of the abdomen, below the anus. Each spinneret terminates in a number of
spigots. The spinnerets are well-muscled, very flexible and can move independently of
each other to place the silk exactly where it is needed. Each spinneret is supplied with
silk by a silk-producing gland located in the abdomen. There can be as many as 8
different kinds of silk glands, each producing a different kind of silk for a different
purpose. Certain spiders, called cribellate spiders, have an additional spinning organ
called the cribellum. Cribellum literally means 'little sieve'. This is a single plate, or
paired plates, thickly covered in thousands of tiny spigots that produce extremely fine
silk threads. These join to form the hackled bands of cribellate silk.
Spinnerets
Spinnerets of a greenbottle blue tarantula-Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens

Native to the Paraguaná Peninsula, near Punto Fijo
Silk is a liquid protein (glycine, alanine, serine, and tyrosine) that can only be formed
into a thread by stretching. This, the spider does with its legs or anchoring the silk and
then moving off, thereby stretching it. For a long time, the process that uses the liquid
to change into a solid thread was not fully understood. New research has shown that
the protein goes through an 'acid bath' in the tubule, which causes the liquid water-
soluble protein to become solid, waterproof silk as it moves from the silk glands to the
spinnerets. Different glands produce different types of silk, such as adhesive silk,
stabilimenta and draglines. Silk has the approximate tensile strength of nylon of the
same thickness, although it is far more elastic.
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Spiders use silk for many purposes:
To modify habitats.
To catch prey.
To protect themselves and their young.
While all spiders have spinnerets and use silk extensively, not all spiders spin webs to
catch prey. More spiders do not spin webs than ones that do. Whether spiders build
webs or not, most use silk to construct hiding and resting places. These can be
temporary shelters, in which they shed their skin, rest or overwinter, or be permanent
homes such as burrows, which may be constructed entirely from, or only lined with silk.
Trapdoor lids are also made of silk, incorporating surrounding material for camouflage.
Silk is used to make egg sacs and to convey signals during courtship.
Silk is also used by spiders as anchor lines for swinging, retracing their steps, vibratory
and chemical communication, and a sensory extension of their own bodies. It is used
for nurseries, fishing lines, and 'wings' (when ballooning for dispersal). Many spiders also
wrap their prey in silk, and a number of them recycle silk by eating their web when
they take it down.
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Web types
Webs fall into 3 broad categories:
Orb webs
Sheet webs
Space webs
Within these 3 types, there are endless variations. Webs differ from species to species
and from spider to spider (within the same species). A web can lose its ability to snare
prey over time, and it can dry out, lose its stickiness, become dusty or get broken. This
is why permanent webs need repairing from time to time. Permanent webs also attract
predators like birds, bats, insects, parasitic wasps, and spider-eating spiders. This is
especially dangerous for spiders who remain on their web all day. Some birds collect
silk to build their nests.
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Large permanent webs are also often invaded by kleptoparasites, e.g. dew-drop
spiders. These spiders catch small prey that land on their web, and they help
themselves to larger prey while the host is feeding. They sometimes even prey on the
web owner and her consorts or young, should the opportunity arise. Spiders must
remove their webs and renew them often. Some webs are built at dusk and removed
at dawn to take advantage of the bounty of nocturnal flying insects and avoid diurnal
predators. To save valuable protein, many spiders eat their webs when they take them
down. These spiders hide during the day.
Graeme Mitchley
Golden silk orb-weaver-Family: Nephilidae
All spiders produce a dragline as they move about. This is designed as a safety
precaution but has reproductive uses as well. As the spider moves, it draws out a long
line of non-adhesive silk that attaches to the ground at various intervals using adhesive
silk. Should the spider fall off a branch, it can climb up the thread and return to its
original position.
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Why do spiders not get entangled in their own webs?
Most web-living spiders do not walk on their webs but rather hang from them. There
are exceptions, like the funnel-web spiders, Agelenidae, which walk on the upper
surface of their webs. The silk is held between the third claw and a set of stiff bristles on
the spider's tarsi, which lack scopulae. The tarsi are always kept scrupulously clean to
prevent the silk from sticking to the spider's legs. Orb-weaver spiders produce a 'dry-
silk' zone for the inner circle, using non-sticky silk, followed by a gap before the sticky
'catch web'. Together, all these factors allow web-living spiders to move in their webs
easily, without getting entangled or stuck.
Graeme Mitchley
Other names: Goue Wawielwebspinnekop
These large spiders are well known in South Africa for their magnificent golden webs.
The webs are huge, often spanning a large area between bushes. The web is strong,
and we have seen small birds trapped in the webs. The female spiders are large, and
the web often contains multiple spiders. The golden orbs usually have black legs and
a yellow to white abdomen. They are harmless to humans and pets. Source:
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The construction of an orb-weaver web
The bridge line: the initial bridge line is constructed, allowing silk thread to be
carried by the wind from 1 point to another attachment point. The bridge line is
sometimes carried over the ground, then pulled up to the opposite attachment
point.
The foundation lines: after constructing the bridge line, the spider moves to various
other points lower down, throwing out a dragline and attaching them using an
attachment disc. In this way, the framework or foundation lines are constructed,
within which the orb will be made.
The radii: radial lines are set up from the initial 'Y' shape radial to points around the
constructed framework.
The hub: this is the centre of the web, at the point where all radials meet.
Depending on the species, it may be strengthened by a mesh of silk threads,
reinforced by an intricate network of criss-cross patterns, or left open.
Graeme Mitchley
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The dry-silk zone: non-sticky silk is used to construct the inner circle of the web.
Space is left between the dry inner circle and the adhesive catch web.
The catch-web: starting from the outer circumference, the spider spins a viscid
thread moving in a spiral towards the edge of the free zone.
The trapline: some species build a line that connects the hub to an adjacent
retreat. The line transmits vibrations caused by the struggling prey to the hidden
spider. This sturdy line also allows the spider to move freely and quickly between
the open web and the hidden retreat.
The stabilimentum: some species spin a zigzag stabilimentum of thick silk across their
web, either vertically or horizontally. This structure may strengthen the web, or it
may also act as a warning to large flying insects or birds that may destroy the web
if they fly into it. Some research suggests that the stabilimentum mimics the nectar
guides of flowers visible to bees and insects (under ultraviolet light), attracting
potential prey to the web.
Graeme Mitchley
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Food and feeding

All spiders are predatory. Most species feed on small creatures such as arthropods, but
others are known to take lizards, birds, and fish.
Mygalomorphs (free-living species)
Cursorial species are those that wander around in search of prey. Once they locate
a suitable victim, it is chased down and killed with bites of the large stabbing
chelicerae.
Included in this group are the following:
Baboon spiders
Crab spiders
Fisher spiders
Jumping spiders
Lynx spiders
Tarantulas
Trap door spiders
Wolf spiders
Jumping spider-Family: Salticidae
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Spiders in this group have evolved a variety of 'hunting' strategies:
Some are opportunistic roamers. They wander around simply catching insects they
happen to encounter. Wolf spiders hunt in this manner.
Others prefer a 'sit and wait' strategy. They find a suitable, hidden location and wait
for suitable prey to wander past them.
Crab spiders take this method to the next level by sitting in flower heads and
ambushing visiting insects.
Trap door spiders construct a burrow from which to ambush unsuspecting prey.
Their burrow is constructed with a silk hinged trap door that they cover with moss
and soil to camouflage it. The spider then waits just beneath the lid and is alerted
to the presence of prey either by the vibrations of their movement or a strategically
placed dragline, functioning in much the same way a tripwire does. Successful trap
door spiders may remain in the same location for many years.
Self-test: Name the spider and its typical hunting strategy.
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Araneomorphs (web-spinning species)
The construction of a spider web is truly one of the extraordinary wonders of nature.
Web spinning relies on several different factors and applications.
These include:
Appetite
Instinctive behaviour
Leg length
Locomotor activities
Silk supply
Weight
Graeme Mitchley
Social spider nest
However, most bizarre of all is the fact that visual information is not necessary at all.
Blinded spiders can build flawless webs. No aspects of web construction are learnt,
and the most complex of web designs can immediately be built by hatchlings. The
entire web, or at least the adhesive spirals, is replaced every 24 hours, as silk loses its
stickiness every few days. The old silk is eaten, and the protein is re-assimilated back
into the spider's protein glands.
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Graeme Mitchley
If a web is destroyed by birds or weather, for example, and cannot be eaten, some
species may only be able to spin a new web sometime later, when their silk glands
have had an opportunity to manufacture more protein. Spiders with an ample amount
of protein may be able to replace their entire web in a remarkably short period. In one
study, a spider was seen to complete an entire web in less than an hour, using more
than 20 m [66 ft] of silk.
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Interesting prey capture techniques among Araneomorphs:
Bolas spider: although the bolas spider is a member of the orb-web spider family
(Araneidae), it has abandoned the conventional orb web. Instead, it has evolved
an extraordinary method of capturing prey. At dusk, this nocturnal spider constructs
a trapeze between 2 points, hangs sideways from it, spins a single line of silk with 1
or 2 large sticky drops at the end of it and then swings in a circular motion to catch
moths. It may use some kind of scent to attract its prey (other spiders in this
subfamily imitate the scent of female moths to attract male moths).
Hedgehog spider: also a nocturnal moth-eating spider, the hedgehog spider

constructs a trapeze of silk between 2 points and hangs from it by the back legs
while the front legs are folded. When a moth flies past, the spider opens its front
legs and swings back and forth to catch it. As with the bolas spider, it almost
certainly uses some kind of scent to attract its prey.
Net-casting spiders: these nocturnal spiders hang head down at night, suspended
above the substrate from a scaffold of non-sticky silk, holding a rectangular
catching web between their long front legs. They cast the web over passing insects
with their front legs, then wrap them in silk with their back legs.
Sheet-web spiders: these small spiders hang inverted below the central sheet of
their web. Prey is bitten through the web, then pulled through it to be consumed.
An example of sheet webs
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Funnel-web spiders: this fast-moving spider lurks at the entrance of its retreat to
monitor movement on the web. Because the web is not sticky, the spider must
react fast to intercept the prey before it escapes. After the prey, which is often
bigger than the spider, has been caught, it is dragged into the retreat.
Community nest spiders: when a small insect becomes entangled in the web, 1 or
2 spiders will rush out, grab it, and drag it to the nest entrance, where more spiders
will crowd around the prey to consume it. When a large insect lands in the web,
even more spiders will converge upon it until there is a heaving scrum of spiders
which will eventually overpower most insects.
A funnel-web spider reacts to the vibration of a tiny branch touching its web
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Buck spoor spiders: These spiders construct vertical silk-lined burrows in the sand,
closed with a lobed cribellate mat built flat on the ground, which incorporates sand
and is slightly concave in the centre. Two-lobed webs resemble hoof prints, hence the
common name. Females hunt by waiting belly-up beneath the web for prey to touch
the upper surface of the web. They are reluctant to leave their webs, but adult males
do wander in search of females.
Fishing spiders: These spiders move fast on water, dragging their hind legs as they run.
Vibrations under and on the water alert them to the presence of prey (small fish, frogs,
tadpoles, aquatic insects, and freshwater crustaceans).
Ashley Kemp
Flower crab spiders: These spiders are brightly coloured. Several species in the genus
Thomisus can change colour over several days to blend with the flower on which they
sit. There, they sit and wait to ambush their prey.
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Web-weaving species are sedentary (largely never moving away from a chosen point)
and rely on their webs to entangle prey. There is a great deal of variation in web
designs, the web of each species differing from the next. Webs may be made in a
horizontal or vertical plane, of thick or thin silk, adhesive or non-adhesive silk, of single
strands or woolly strands. Some species' webs have stabilimentum. A quite visible
zigzag feature at the centre of the web thought to warn birds and other animals of the
presence of the web. The function of the web is to trap insects and other arthropods
on its sticky surface where the spider can deliver the coup de grace (killing action).
Many spiders wrap their prey up in a silk bag and store it for later consumption. Moths
and butterflies frequently escape from webs because of the loose scales that they
have on their wings. These stick to the adhesive silk, allowing the victim to fly free.
Kleptoparasites are species that live in the webs of others and steal prey that is too
small for the owner of the web to bother about. Mercury spiders are kleptoparasites
that are frequently seen in the webs of the various orb-weaving spiders. Most spiders
live a solitary lifestyle, only seeking out others to mate. A few families, however, have
evolved some form of social organisation.
These social spider species build and share a communal web and cooperate in
capturing, killing, and sharing prey. Communal spider webs may be of significant
dimensions, some being more than 3 m [9.8 ft] across.
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Spider venom
Venom is produced in a gland at the base of the chelicerae and is used to subdue
prey. Only a few species have venom that is dangerous to humans. A detailed
discussion on spider bites-the diagnosis, treatment and management thereof can be
found in module # 11, component # 5. The button spiders (Latrodectus genus), the
violin spiders (Loxosceles genus) and the six-eyed crab spider (Sicarius genus) are the
only South African species with the potential to kill a person.
North American tarantulas, despite their size, reputation, and look, are not particularly
venomous. Their venom is a cytotoxin with the approximate strength of a bee sting.
Their reputation is also somewhat unfounded with Arizona guide Steven Rich who
frequently demonstrated their gentleness to clients by allowing male tarantulas to
crawl all over him (Pers. Comm → S. Rich, March 2006).
Chaco golden knee-Grammostola pulchripes close up showing the fangs
Spiders feed in a distinctive arachnid fashion. Preliminary digestion takes place outside
the body. After prey has been captured and immobilised by the chelicerae and
pedipalps, digestive juices are poured from the midgut onto the open wounds caused
by the mouthparts. The soft internal parts of the prey are rapidly digested into a 'soup'
that is then sucked into the mouth and alimentary canal, where it is further processed.
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Although not as spectacular as some Acari (ticks and mites), some spider species can
go without food for relatively long periods. This is an adaptation to a predatory lifestyle
that inherently has an uncertain food supply. In addition to this, many spiders have
extremely low metabolisms.
Luke Kemp
A young horned baboon spider-Ceratogyrus darlingi

Blyde River, Limpopo, South Africa
We have said before that spiders play a predatory role in any given ecosystem. This is
only half true. Spiders are also the chosen prey for many species. These include small
mammals like the suricate, insectivores, and rodents. Many bird species regularly prey
upon spiders, as do lizards and other reptiles.
In some cases, spiders find themselves being prey specific. The Pompilid wasp actively
hunts large spiders to kill them, drag them to an underground nest and lay her eggs
on them. Therefore, when defining the role of spiders in an ecosystem, it is crucial to
understand that, like many other groups of animals, they function as both predators
and prey.
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Spiders of medical importance

Spiders usually have either neurotoxic (affecting the nervous system) or cytotoxic
(tissue destroying) venom. The following spiders are of medical importance, and it is
important to be able to identify them.
Neurotoxic venom Cytotoxic venom

Black button spider Sac spider
Brown button spider Violin spider
Small baboon spider Six-eyed crab spider
Symptoms of bites Symptoms of bites
- Heart palpitations - Bite is painless
- Difficulty breathing - Red bump forms and starts to become
- Increase in blood pressure painful
- Pains in the chest and abdomen - Develops into an ulcer which can
- Extreme anxiety develop into a large lesion
Guy Degrande
Brown button spider-Latrodectus geometricus
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Sensory organs
Eyesight
Most spiders have 8 simple eyes (ocelli), often in 2 rows of 4 eyes each. Spiders' eyes
are the most efficient of all the arachnids. Each eye has a lens, optic rods, and a retina.
The eyes of many cursorial species have a well-developed tapetum that aids in
gathering light onto the retina and therefore improves night vision. The eyes of these
species are often seen in the beam of a spotlight during night drives in the bush. It
remains uncertain whether spiders can differentiate colour.
A jumping spider-Family: Salticidae
The eyes are used chiefly for the perception of moving objects. The wandering hunting
spiders have better eyesight than web-living spiders. Jumping spiders (family
Salticidae) have the most sophisticated visual equipment of spiders. The anterior
median eyes allow a degree of binocular vision to estimate distance and form images.
They can focus reasonably well for up to 4 cm [1.6 in].
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Smell
Spiders have tarsal organs, which are small, pit-shaped sensors situated on the upper
side of the tarsus of each front leg and the pedipalps. These organs are chemical
(scent) receptors, or olfactory organs, which enable the spider to taste and smell, and
react to changes in humidity and temperature. Adult females probably exude a sex
pheromone to attract males. Male spiders seem to be able to home in on a female
from a considerable distance, even when she does not move. This seems to indicate
that her scent is carried through the air and picked up by males. Many male spiders
also use this sense of 'taste by touch' to track down females of their species when they
have laid down scented silk trails.
Taste
The spider's taste organs are hollow 'taste hairs' open at the tips, found mainly on the
legs and palpal segments furthest from the body. An adult spider can have thousands
of chemosensitive hairs.
Tactile senses
Hairs and slit organs on the legs of most species are used in the tactile location of mates
and prey. For the Labdiognatha species, this tactile sense is of the utmost importance.
An exceptional tactile sense is necessary for interpreting vibrations on webs.
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Can spiders produce sound?
Spiders produce a variety of sounds, primarily to communicate with their own kind and
deter predators. Many male spiders produce sounds to attract females during
courtship or to intimidate rival males. These sounds are generally inaudible to the
human ear. Sounds produced to deter predators are much louder than other sounds.
Spiders in different families or genera produce sound in different ways:
Stridulation: scraper and file arrangements found on opposing body parts can be
rubbed together to produce buzzing, clicking, hissing, or purring sounds.
Producing sounds by vibrating certain body parts or drumming or tapping their
pedipalps, legs or abdomens on natural objects like dry leaves, acting as
amplifiers.
The males of certain wolf spiders produce hissing sounds by scraping the spiny
bristles on the coxae (first joints) of their hindmost legs over the rough outer covering
of their book lungs.
Other wolf spiders have a file and scraper on the joint between the tibia and tarsus
of the pedipalp, which, when rubbed together, make a little rasping noise.
Ashley Kemp
Wolf spider-Family: Lycosidae
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Other spiders drum with their pedipalps or abdomens on the ground or any other
substrate or vibrate their legs or abdomens.
In one species of spitting spider, the male emits a soft buzz to attract females by
rubbing together roughened areas on the outer edge of his chelicerae (the file)
and the inner side of its pedipalps (the scraper).
Male and female baboon spiders hiss when alarmed, sounding much like snakes.
This is a defensive sound intended to deter small predators. This is a much louder
sound than that used in spider to spider communication. It is produced by rubbing
together parts of the chelicerae (fang bases) and the pedipalps covered with
rough hairs.
Luke Kemp
Golden blue-legged baboon spider-Harpactira pulchripes
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Reproduction
The abdomen of spiders is unsegmented and usually sac-like and soft. It is joined to
the cephalothorax by the pedicel, through which the nerves, intestine and blood
vessels pass. Lying directly behind the pedicel is the epigastrium, ending about a 3rd of
the way down the abdomen in an epigastric furrow. Along this furrow is the opening
for the reproductive organs and, at each end, an opening for the book lungs. The
tracheal spiracles are situated along the midline towards the spinnerets. The male
reproductive organs are simple and small, only serving to emit the sperm placed on
the complex pedipalps. The mature female reproductive opening is known as the
epigynum, which opens to the 2 internal ovaries.
A female rain spider (Palystes) guarding her nest
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Courtship
Up to this point, female spiders have led a solitary life devoted to catching prey and
feeding on anything that moves in her direction or driving it off. Correct mate
recognition is important for spiders. If they make a mistake, they may be eaten by their
so-called mate. Mate recognition is therefore accomplished by several tried and
tested methods. It is generally untrue that spiders always eat their mates after
copulation. This only takes place infrequently and is usually accidental. One method
of mate recognition is analysing the pheromone cocktail left behind on the dragline
by a female.
This allows the male to find out what the:
Species
Gender
Receptiveness of the female is before he approaches her.
Web-weaving spiders have a 'Morse-code' system of mate recognition. A male will

approach the web of a female and give a series of tugs to the strands. These tugs have
a code unique to that species and will be answered by the female if everything
appears correct.
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Some spiders who do not live on a web, e.g. male nursery-web spiders in Europe, will
appease the female, presenting her with a gift or 'peace offering'. This gift is an insect
wrapped in silk. Only when the female starts eating the insect will the male approach
her and start mating.
Male Australian redback spiders (Latrodectus hasselti), related to our button spiders,
seem to offer themselves to their mate's jaws as a kind of sexual sacrifice. Following
copulation, the male swivels around under the female, positioning his abdomen right
below her fangs. Sometimes the male is eaten, and other times not. No pattern has
been identified. This behaviour might ensure that the female gets enough protein to
produce many healthy offspring that will carry the males' genes.
In jumping spiders, the male of some species seeks out the female just before her final
moult. He then spins a nest nearby or right against hers and waits until she has shed her
skin, rendering her too soft and weak to resist his advances.
The males of some crab spider species wait until the female is preoccupied with food
before spinning fine strands of silk over her legs, creeping beneath her huge abdomen
to mate with her. The silken bonds cannot actually hold the female, but they seem to
appease her. Other male crab spiders clamber onto the female's enormous abdomen
and then tap and stroke it to get her 'in the mood'. Only when she is sufficiently soothed
will he clamber below her abdomen and mate. This foreplay is essential if the male
spider is to survive-the female's epigynum is dangerously close to her jaws.
The wolf spider waves his pedipalps up and down in rhythmic movements while
tapping his front pair of legs on the ground. He then slowly moves towards the female,
awaiting the signal that she is ready to accept him and not attack him. Sometimes
there is leg rubbing and touching before mating takes place.
35
Copulation
The male's pedipalps are adapted into sex organs. The female's epigynum is
constructed uniquely to only accept the configuration of a male pedipalp of the same
species, like a 'lock and key'. Immature spiders are, to a large extent, sexless. The
pedipalps and epigynum in immature spiders are non-functional. They only develop
into functional reproductive organs when the spider undergoes its final ecdysis,
attaining adult maturity. The male spider's single aim in life is to find a female with which
to mate.
Pedipalp
Thorax
Cardiac
Epigynum
region
Male Female
The male charges his pedipalps with seminal fluid before courting begins. The male
and female genital pores are located on the abdomen's ventral surface, between the
book lungs. For the male to transfer sperm from his genital pore to his pedipalps, he
must construct a small triangular or square sperm web just above the ground's surface.
While standing above this sperm web, he then deposits a drop of sperm into the web's
centre.
He then dips his pedipalps into the seminal fluid or presses them from underneath the
web against the sperm deposit, drawing up the fluid using a large embolus of the
pedipalp. Courtship, particular to the type of spider described above, then ensues
until the female has indicated her receptiveness. The actual copulation may last from
a few seconds to several hours, depending on the species. The male inserts his
pedipalps into the epigynum of the female and transfers the sperm to her.
36
In some species, like the button spiders, the male's pedipalps break off in the female's
epigynum as a kind of natural chastity belt, rendering him reproductively useless
afterwards. The eggs are only fertilised as they leave the female's body. Once the
female is inseminated, she may hold the sperm in her spermatheca (sperm repositories)
for days or even months on end, only using the amount needed to fertilise the eggs
she lays at any one time. She is, therefore, able to produce a large number of egg
sacs full of fertile eggs after only having mated once. Araneomorphs can ecdyse and
retain viable sperm for the next egg-laying. In contrast, mygalomorphs are evaginated
during ecdysis and must mate again to lay fertile eggs. The 'gestation' periods vary
significantly between species and are related to the spider's lifespan.
Usually, the smaller the spider, the fewer eggs are laid in each sac, but many of the
smaller spiders lay more than 1 egg sac at a given time or over a long period of time.
Like the lynx spider, some spiders tend to stay with the egg sac, guarding it until the
young hatch. Like the nursery-web spider, some spiders provide a nursery where the
spiderlings live safely until they reach their 2nd or 3rd instar and can fend for themselves.
The wolf spiders carry their young around on their backs until they are ready to
become independent.
37
Growth and dispersal
Up to 3000 eggs are laid in a silk casing at a time, where the newly hatched young
remain until they have undergone their first moult. Development takes place through
a few instars until sexual maturity is reached. When the old skin has been shed, there is
rapid growth until the new and pliable skin hardens, effectively preventing further
growth. The spider then must wait until the next ecdysis before it can get any bigger.
The smaller species go through fewer moults to reach maturity. Medium-sized species
moult around 7 times, while large species ecdyse up to 10 times. Usually, spiders retreat
into a secluded and quiet place to ecdyse. They are most vulnerable during and
immediately after moulting.
Ester Van Der Merwe
Trapdoor spiderlings dispersing from their nest
After moulting, the spiderlings of many species are known to climb to the top of the
nearest high point and release a strand of silk into the air. Once the wind tugs the
thread hard enough, the spiderling releases its hold and floats away using the silk
strand as a balloon. This ensures the dispersal of the species throughout the area. On
average, spiders live for between 1 and 2 years. In some remarkable cases, though,
captive individuals have been known to live as pets for more than 20 years. This
illustrates the often harsh conditions of the wild compared to the almost stress-free
environment occasionally provided by people. Female spiders live longer than males.
38
Mimicry in spiders
Some spiders employ mimicry as a way of being detected, either by their prey or by
their enemies. The genus Myrmarachne are ant-like jumping spiders. They have an
elongated cephalothorax with relatively long chelicerae that projects forward in
males. The cephalothorax has a waist, and the opisthosoma often has one too. The
colours can vary from black to yellow, depending on the ant species it mimics and
can change throughout its life. For example, one African species was observed to
mimic a certain ant species as a juvenile and another ant species as an adult.
When ants follow a trail, they weave their heads back and forth. The ant is trying to
cast back and forth over a chemical trail that is hard to find. Remarkably, jumping
spiders also perform this weaving behaviour even though it has no functional
significance for them, except to help remain undetected as a spider. Spiders have an
extra pair of legs compared to ants and no antennae. But ant mimics will wave their
small forelegs in the air like ant antennae. They tend to wave their front legs in the air
to simulate antennae, and many have bodies that also closely resemble ants.
Comparison of ant and ant-mimic jumping spiders (Myrmarachne ichneumon) in

Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique. Image: Thomas Shahan
39
Why mimic ants? Most birds avoid ants and their painful stingers, sharp mandibles, and
the habit of showing up with many friends. In comparison, spiders are delicious and
nutritious. Lots of insects and arachnids mimic ants because they are so formidable.
That is why nearly every insect family, from beetles to mantises, has species that mimic
ants. Some plants, too, have evolved a mutually beneficial relationship with aggressive
ants to discourage hungry leaf-eaters.
Some male buckspoor spiders mimic ants or wingless wasps and move around above
ground, looking for prey and receptive females.
Orb web spiders spin complex patterns, such as zigzags (stabilimenta), in the middle
of their webs. The patterns reflect ultraviolet light, mimicking patterns that many flowers
have, called nectar guides. Bees follow the ultraviolet guides in search of nectar, and
then the silver Argiope gets another meal. Bees have a good memory, and they can
remember which patterns are, in fact, traps. To stay on the offensive, this spider
changes its web pattern every day.
David Mark
Phidippus johnsoni, the red-backed jumping spider, is one of the largest and most
commonly encountered jumping spiders of western North America. It is a species of
jumping spider that mimics the mutillid wasps in the genus Dasymutilla (commonly
known as 'velvet ants'); several species of these wasps are similar in size and
colouration. It possesses a very painful sting.
40
Most recent discoveries
New spider species discovered on Table

Mountain National Park
Published by Kirsten Jacobs on July 15, 2020

Via: www.capetownetc.com
Researchers have made a new exciting discovery on Table Mountain National Park,
further contributing to the park's already rich biodiversity. The first is a spider they have
dubbed the 'Red Widow'. While they are unsure of whether this spider is a new species,
its discovery is exciting, nonetheless. It will undergo a formal taxonomic classification
process to determine whether or not it is a brand-new species.
41
The 'red widow'. Credit: Andrew Baxter
It is currently uncertain what species the spider is. Credit: Andrew Baxter
42
Dr Andrew Baxter found the specimen on the 'back table' region of Table Mountain
between 500-800 m [1640-2624 ft] altitude on west-facing slopes among moist fynbos.
He had initially thought it was a common spider, but upon feedback from people in
the Spider Club of South Africa forum, he returned to collect a live specimen. He
told The Spider Club of South Africa that they are unsure what the species is but
believes it could be a new form of Theridiidae or belong to a genus from the family
Cyatholipidae. The spiders are small, about 1cm [0.3 in] in body size and no evidence
of webs was found. The spider’s body is 1cm [0.3 in] in length.
The spider will undergo a classification process. Credit: Andrew Baxter
For simplicity, the spider is currently being called a strawberry theridiid or a strawberry
button, although it is not within the same genus as a button/widow spider, says
Rudolph Steinkampf of the Spider Club.
'For simplicity's sake, let us call it a strawberry theridiid, or a strawberry button (even
though it is not in the same genus as the button/widow spiders), or call it what you
want. According to Prof. Haddad, there are at least 5 species of these undescribed
theridiids in South Africa. He suspects it is Ruborridion sp., but Prof. Dippenaar-
Schoeman thinks it is something else, possibly a new genus,' Steinkampf writes.
43
Dr Baxter explains that the classification process is lengthy and complex.
'The objective is to seek a description from a Theridiidae (seems likely) expert with a
view to determining the taxonomy. Should this spider be an undescribed species, then
ultimately we would hope for a classification-but as you well know, this can be a
complex process,' he told the Spider Club of South Africa.
'I would like the community to know that if it does turn out to be a new species, that
our wish is to 'donate' the naming/nomenclature to a species-naming auction to be
facilitated by WWF South Africa, with all the proceeds to accrue to WWF for natural
habitat protection. I used to head up fundraising for WWF, and a few years ago, I
auctioned off the naming rights for a new fynbos flower at the Linnaeus Institute in
London, which enabled WWF to purchase a significant piece of private property-now
incorporated into the conservation real-estate of Table Mountain National Park.
Hopefully, these little red chaps can bring the same conservation outcome.'
Pictures: Andrew Baxter

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1

– WildlifeCampus Game Ranging/Field Guiding Course

Recognise all spiders based on their external anatomy.

Spiders (order: Araneae)

Summary of the differences between Araneomorphs and Mygalomorphs:

Stone huntsman spider-Genus: Eusparassus

Scorpion spider-Family: Trochanteriidae

Other names: Skerpioenspinnekop

Close up of a wolf spider showing the eyes, chelicera, and fangs

Other names: Wolfspinnekop

The underside and head of a spider showing the external anatomy

Special adaptations of spider 'feet'

Close up of the end feet of a tarantula

1. Book lungs, which open on the underside of the abdomen.

Diagram of spider book lungs

The internal anatomy of a female 2-lunged spider. (Ryan Wilson)-Anatomical

Silk and spinnerets

Spinnerets of a greenbottle blue tarantula-Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens

Spiders use silk for many purposes:

Golden silk orb-weaver-Family: Nephilidae

Why do spiders not get entangled in their own webs?

Golden silk orb-weaver-Family: Nephilidae

Other names: Goue Wawielwebspinnekop

The construction of an orb-weaver web

Golden silk orb-weaver-Family: Nephilidae

Golden silk orb-weaver-Family: Nephilidae

Food and feeding

Mygalomorphs (free-living species)

Included in this group are the following:

Jumping spider-Family: Salticidae

Spiders in this group have evolved a variety of 'hunting' strategies:

Self-test: Name the spider and its typical hunting strategy.

Araneomorphs (web-spinning species)

Social spider nest

Golden silk orb-weaver-Family: Nephilidae

Interesting prey capture techniques among Araneomorphs:

Hedgehog spider: also a nocturnal moth-eating spider, the hedgehog spider

An example of sheet webs

Chaco golden knee-Grammostola pulchripes close up showing the fangs

A young horned baboon spider-Ceratogyrus darlingi

Spiders of medical importance

Neurotoxic venom Cytotoxic venom

Brown button spider-Latrodectus geometricus

A jumping spider-Family: Salticidae

Can spiders produce sound?

Spiders in different families or genera produce sound in different ways:

Wolf spider-Family: Lycosidae

Golden blue-legged baboon spider-Harpactira pulchripes

A female rain spider (Palystes) guarding her nest

This allows the male to find out what the:

Web-weaving spiders have a 'Morse-code' system of mate recognition. A male will

Growth and dispersal

Ester Van Der Merwe

Trapdoor spiderlings dispersing from their nest

Comparison of ant and ant-mimic jumping spiders (Myrmarachne ichneumon) in

Most recent discoveries

New spider species discovered on Table

Published by Kirsten Jacobs on July 15, 2020

The 'red widow'. Credit: Andrew Baxter