Phonognatha melanopyga
Artifex melanopyga, synonym Phonognatha melanopyga,[1] referred to as a leaf curling spider, is a common Australian spider found in moist coastal areas of New South Wales and Queensland.[2] A small member of the family Araneidae, the orb-weavers, it was previously placed in Tetragnathidae.[3][4]
| Phonognatha melanopyga | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Araneidae |
| Genus: | Artifex |
| Species: | A. melanopyga |
| Binomial name | |
| Artifex melanopyga L.Koch, 1871 (Australia) | |
Description
The spider is distinguished by having a curled leaf at the centre of its web, in which it shelters. The abdomen is a plump oval or egg shape, light in colour with a dark mark at the rear from which the species name "melanopyga" is derived.[5] Additional dark marks form a pattern dorsally on the abdomen. The legs are light brown with the joints darker. Females are 9mm in length and males 7mm.
References
- Kallal, R. J. & Hormiga, G.. (2018b). Systematics, phylogeny and biogeography of the Australasian leaf-curling orb-weaving spiders (Araneae: Araneidae: Zygiellinae), with a comparative analysis of retreat evolution. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 184(4): 1055-1141.
- "Phonognatha melanopyga". Atlas of Living Australia. CSIRO. Retrieved 2018-08-03.
- Platnick, N. I. 2008. Araneidae The World Spider Catalog, version 9.0. American Museum of Natural History.
- Kuntner, M., J. A. Coddington & G. Hormiga. 2008. Phylogeny of extant nephilid orb-weaving spiders (Araneae, Nephilidae): testing morphological and ethological homologies. Cladistics 24: 190.
- Whyte, Robert; Anderson, Greg (2017). A Field Guide to Spiders of Australia. Clayton South Vic. 3169: CSIRO publishing. p. 112. ISBN 9780643107076.CS1 maint: location (link)
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