Journal of Ethology

, 27:453 | Cite as

Elongated orb-webs of Australian ladder-web spiders (Araneidae: Telaprocera) and the significance of orb-web elongation

Article
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

Many orb-web spiders build modified, asymmetrical orbs. Ladder-webs (a general term describing highly elongated orb-webs) are extreme examples of modified orbs built by several spider species in different families. Australian ladder-web spiders, Telaprocera (Araneidae), build highly elongated orbs consisting of a centralised orb-like portion with ladder extensions above and below. Webs are built exclusively on tree trunks, although most of the web is not in direct contact with the tree surface, as in some other ladder-web species. This study provides the first detailed description of the web structure, web-building behaviour and habitat preferences of Telaprocera spiders and discusses possible functions of this highly elongated orb-web form. The ladder-web of Telaprocera is probably an adaptation to building against trees, rather than the proposed moth specialisation function in some other ladder-web species. This has also been suggested for an African ladder-web spider Clitaetra irenae. Additionally, the web-building behaviour of Telaprocera spiders differs from that of the New Zealand ladder-web spider, Cryptaranea atrihastula, despite its remarkably similar web form.

Keywords

Ladder-web Orb-web Telaprocera Web modification Web-building behaviour 
This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access.

Notes

Acknowledgments

I am greatly indebted to Anne Wignall and Dinesh Rao for their many hours of assistance in the field. Many thanks also to Marie Herberstein, Anne Wignall, Chris Weldon and two anonymous reviewers for very helpful comments on the manuscript. Funding was provided by the Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University.

References

  1. Blackledge TA, Gillespie RG (2002) Estimation of capture areas of spider orb webs in relation to asymmetry. J Arachnol 30:70–77CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  2. Craig CL (1987) The significance of spider size to the diversification of spider-web architectures and spider reproductive modes. Am Nat 129:47–68CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  3. Eberhard WG (1972) The web of Uloborus diversus (Araneae: Uloboridae). J Zool 166:417–465CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  4. Eberhard WG (1975) The ‘inverted ladder’ orb web of Scoloderus sp. and the intermediate orb of Eustala (?) sp. Araneae: Araneidae. J Nat Hist 9:93–106CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  5. Eberhard WG (1977) Aggressive chemical mimicry by a bolas spider. Science 198:1173–1175PubMedCrossRefGoogle Scholar
  6. Eberhard WG (1990) Function and phylogeny of spider webs. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 21:341–372CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  7. Forster LM, Forster RR (1985) A derivative of the orb web and its evolutionary significance. N Z J Zool 12:455–465Google Scholar
  8. Griswold CE, Coddington JA, Hormiga G, Scharff N (1998) Phylogeny of the orb-web building spiders (Araneae, Orbiculariae: Deinopoidea, Araneoidea). Zool J Linn Soc Lond 123:1–99CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  9. Harmer AMT, Framenau VW (2008) Telaprocera (Araneae: Araneidae), a new genus of Australian orb-web spiders with highly elongated webs. Zootaxa 1956:59–80Google Scholar
  10. Heiling AM, Herberstein ME (1998) The web of Nuctenea sclopetaria (Araneae, Araneidae): relationship between body size and web design. J Arachnol 26:91–96Google Scholar
  11. Heiling AM, Herberstein ME (2000) Interpretations of orb-web variability: a review of past and current ideas. Ekol Bratislava 19:97–106Google Scholar
  12. Herberstein ME, Elgar MA (1994) Foraging strategies of Eriophora transmarina and Nephila plumipes (Araneae: Araneoidea): nocturnal and diurnal orb-weaving spiders. Aust J Ecol 19:451–457CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  13. Herberstein ME, Heiling AM (1999) Asymmetry in spider orb webs: a result of physical constraints? Anim Behav 58:1241–1246PubMedCrossRefGoogle Scholar
  14. Herberstein ME, Tso I (2000) Evaluation of formulae to estimate the capture area and mesh height of orb webs (Araneoidea, Araneae). J Arachnol 28:180–184CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  15. Higgins L (1992) Developmental changes in barrier web structure under different levels of predation risk in Nephila clavipes (Araneae: Tetragnathidae). J Insect Behav 5:635–655CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  16. Hill PJB, Holwell GI, Göth A, Herberstein ME (2004) Preference for habitats with low structural complexity in the preying mantid Ciulfina sp. (Mantidae). Acta Oecol 26:1–7CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  17. Kuntner M (2005) A revision of Herennia (Araneae: Nephilidae: Nephilinae), the Australasian ‘coin spiders’. Invertebr Syst 19:391–436CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  18. Kuntner M (2006) Phylogenetic systematics of the Gondwanan nephilid spider lineage Clitaetrinae (Araneae, Nephilidae). Zool Scr 35:19–62CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  19. Kuntner M, Coddington JA, Hormiga G (2008a) Phylogeny of extant nephilid orb-weaving spiders (Araneae, Nephilidae): testing morphological and ethological homologies. Cladistics 24:147–217CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  20. Kuntner M, Haddad CR, Aljančič G, Blejec A (2008b) Ecology and web allometry of Clitaetra irenae, an arboricolous African orb-weaving spider (Araneae, Araneoidea, Nephilidae). J Arachnol 36:583–594CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  21. Lubin YD (1973) Web structure and function: the non-adhesive orb-web of Cyrtophora moluccensis (Doleschall) (Araneae: Araneidae). Forma Functio 6:337–358Google Scholar
  22. Masters WM, Moffat AJM (1983) A functional explanation of top-bottom asymmetry in vertical orb-webs. Anim Behav 31:1043–1046CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  23. Opell BD (1982) Post-hatching development and web production of Hyptiotes cavatus (Hentz) (Araneae, Uloboridae). J Arachnol 10:185–191Google Scholar
  24. Robinson MH, Robinson B (1972) The structure, possible function and origin of the remarkable ladder-web built by a New Guinea orb-web spider (Araneae: Araneidae). J Nat Hist 6:687–694CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  25. Robinson MH, Lubin YD (1979) Specialists and generalists: the ecology and behaviour of some web-building spiders from Papua New Guinea. 1. Herennia ornatissima, Argiope ocyaloides and Arachnura melanura (Araneae: Araneidae). Pac Insects 21:97–132Google Scholar
  26. Srinivasan MV (1992) How bees exploit optic flow: behavioural experiments and neural models. Phil Trans R Soc Lond B 337:253–259CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  27. Stowe MK (1978) Observations of two nocturnal orbweavers that build specialised webs: Scoloderus cordatus and Wixia ectypa (Araneae: Araneidae). J Arachnol 6:141–146Google Scholar
  28. Zschokke S (1999) Nomenclature of the orb-web. J Arachnol 27:542–546Google Scholar
  29. Zschokke S, Vollrath F (1995) Web construction patterns in a range of orb-weaving spiders (Araneae). Eur J Entomol 92:521–523Google Scholar

Copyright information

© Japan Ethological Society and Springer 2009

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of Biological SciencesMacquarie UniversitySydneyAustralia

Personalised recommendations