Araneus alsine

The strawberry spider or orange wheelweaving spider (Araneus alsine) is a species of the orb-weaving spider family, Araneidae.[1][2]

Orange Wheelweaving Spider
Strawberry Spider
A. alsine in rolled leaf
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Arachnida
Order:
Araneae
Suborder:
Araneomorphae
Family:
Araneidae
Genus:
Araneus
Species:
A. alsine
Binomial name
Araneus alsine
(Walckenaer, 1802)
Synonyms
  • Aranea alsine Walckenaer, 1802
  • Epeira alsine (Walckenaer, 1802)
  • Epeira lutea C. L. Koch, 1837

Distribution

This species has a palearctic distribution (Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia, Kazakhstan, Japan).[3][4]

Habitat

These spiders prefer moist environments. They mainly inhabit forests clearings, swampy bogs with birch and heather, wet meadows, high grass and shady places.[5][6]

Description
Male of Araneus alsine, dorsal view

Araneus alsine can reach a body length of 6.5–8.5 millimetres (0.26–0.33 in) in males, of 12–14.9 millimetres (0.47–0.59 in) in females.[5] These spiders have a large, almost globular or slightly elliptical shaped opisthosoma, ranging from beige to reddish-orange, with many white-and-yellow spots spread over the surface and sometimes forming the sign of a cross. Sternum, chelicerae and legs are reddish brown. Legs show darker annulations in males.[5][7] As one of its common names suggests, A. alsine appears somewhat like a strawberry.

Habits

In June and July A. alsine builds small webs (less than 10 or 20 cm high) near the ground and waits near them in dried leaves that it has rolled together, forming an inverted cone.[5][8] The retreat and web can be found in low vegetation, often near bushes of Vaccinium uliginosum.[9] Mating occurs in June and July, eggs are laid until August. The spiderlings soon hatch, overwinter in a subadult stadium and are full-grown in early summer next year.

Bibliography
  • Blackwall, J., 1864a - A history of the spiders of Great Britain and Ireland. London, Ray Society, vol.2, pp. 175–384.
  • Bösenberg, W., 1901 - Die Spinnen Deutschlands. I. Zoologica (Stuttgart) vol.14(1), pp. 1–96.
  • Heiko Bellmann, Guida ai ragni d'Europa, Roma, Franco Muzzio Editore, 2011, pp. 138–139, ISBN 9788874132393.
  • Heimer, S. & W. Nentwig, 1991 - Spinnen Mitteleuropas: Ein Bestimmungsbuch. Verlag Paul Parey, Berlin, 543 pp.
  • Locket, G.H. & A.F. Millidge, 1953 - British spiders. Ray Society, London, vol.2, pp. 1–449.
  • Sestáková, A., M. Krumpál & Z. Krumpálová, 2009 - Araneidae (Araneae) Strednej Európy: I. Rod Araneus. Bratislava, Prírodovedecká Fakulta Univerzity Komenskéhó, 151 pp.
  • Simon, E., 1929 - Les arachnides de France. Synopsis générale et catalogue des espèces françaises de l'ordre des Araneae; 3e partie. Paris, vol.6, pp. 533–772.
  • Walckenaer, C.A., 1802 - Faune parisienne. Insectes. ou Histoire abrégée des insectes de environs de Paris. Paris vol.2, pp. 187–250.
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References
  1. Catalogue of life
  2. Biolib
  3. "Araneus alsine". World Spider Catalog. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
  4. Fauna europaea
  5. "Araneae - Spiders of Europe". Archived from the original on 2017-04-25. Retrieved 2018-05-03.
  6. Araneidae - The Spiders of Europe and Greenland
  7. Michael John Roberts The Spiders of Great Britain and Ireland, Volume 2
  8. Laura Joint Strawberry spiders forever - BBC article on "one of the UK's rarest species of spider"
  9. Araneus alsine, Pink orb weaver - Danish Spiders
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