A natural history of web decorations in the St Andrew’s Cross spider (Argiope keyserlingi)
Dinesh Rao A C , Ken Cheng B and Marie E. Herberstein A BA Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW 2109, Australia.
B Centre for the Integrative Study of Animal Behaviour, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW 2109, Australia.
C Corresponding author. Email: dinrao@gmail.com
Australian Journal of Zoology 55(1) 9-14 https://doi.org/10.1071/ZO06010
Submitted: 16 January 2006 Accepted: 4 January 2007 Published: 23 March 2007
Abstract
A long-running debate in the spider literature concerns the function of the extra silk decorations in some spider webs. These decorations are appended to the web and constitute a highly visible signal, which is inconsistent with the trend towards web invisibility. Despite the sustained attention of researchers, the exact function of these decorations is yet to be understood. While most studies have focussed on testing particular hypotheses, there has been a dearth of natural history data regarding web decorations in field conditions. In this study we present baseline data regarding the influence of seasonality, microhabitat characteristics and ecology on the presence of web decorations in an Australian orb web spider, Argiope keyserlingi. In particular, we show that there is preference among spiders to build their webs between bushes and to face the south-east, but this preference does not influence decoration building.
Acknowledgements
This study was made possible by funding from IMURS, Macquarie University, Sydney.
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