Genus: Nephila (golden orb-web spiders)

Life > Eukaryotes > Opisthokonta > Metazoa (animals) > Bilateria > Ecdysozoa > Panarthropoda > Tritocerebra > Arthropoda > Arachnomorpha > Cheliceriformes > Chelicerata > Euchelicerata > Arachnida > Araneae > Araneomorpha > Family: Nephilidae

	Nephila pilipes fenestrata. [image N. Larsen ©]
Nephila pilipes fenestrata. [image N. Larsen ©]

The largest and most impressive genus in the Nephilidae is Nephila. One species, Nephila fenestra, the black-legged golden orb-web spider, occurs throughout South Africa and is the only species to occur in the Western Cape. Nephila senegalensis occurs in tropical to subtropical areas and constructs a large vertically inclined, sulphurous yellow orb-web which has the top section missing. Nephila fenestra, in semi-social populations, join their webs onto the bottom of another Nephila orb-web forming an awesome, almost inpenetrable curtain of webs - like something from an Indiana Jones movie.  Nephila's web is usually supported between two trees and can span enormous spaces, metres wide, about 1,5 metres or more from the ground and is capable of capturing small birds the size of a bunting. Nephila is a diurnal spider and the females are large, measuring 15-30 mm in length while the males are only about 5mm and are only one thousandth of the female's weight. The female is almost entirely black and the first, second and fourth pairs of legs have a brush of bristles on the tibia. The third pair of legs is the shortest with no brush. The abdomen is elongated (long oval) and is yellow with the caudal (towards the tail end) black or blue with yellow speckles infusing forward into the yellow.

The Nephila male has interesting mating manoeuvres. He presents the female with a fly wrapped in silk and while the female is feeding, he will copulate with his preoccupied mate. There are usually one or two amorous males in the female's web as well as one or more tiny spiders with silver triangular abdomens. These are called dewdrop spiders of the genus Argyrodes (family Theridiidae) and they clean the orb-webs of prey too small for the host spider.

The genus name Nephila is derived from Greek, "nen" meaning  "to spin" and "philos" meaning "love" meaning "fond of spinning".

Text by Norman Larsen ©