Image: Redback Spider, Latrodectus hasselti

Redback Spider, Latrodectus hasselti

Redback Spider, Lactodectus hasselti

 

Redback spider enquiries are very common in Search and Discover

Photographer:
Mike Gray
Rights:
© Australian Museum

Additional information

Web2spider Identification Guide: W31 - tangle web

  • The retreat of the Redback Spider may be of thickly tangled silk and often contains egg sacs.
  • The long lines are the catching points - crawling animals get stuck in the sticky droplets that are near the end of the long lines.
  • These lines have a weak point just above the substrate so the line breaks and the elasticity takes the prey toward the spider.
  • Small prey such as ants can be captured with a single line, while larger prey such as lizards get caught when they come in contact with many lines.

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Tags Web2spider, spiders, webs, Bugwise, Identification Guide,

1 comment

USWoot - 2.07 PM, 03 July 2011
I have a spider in my compost bin that looks exactly like this gal, but she also has a red hourglass on her abdomen. Do the Redbacks have an hourglass on abdomen and a red stripe on back? Are they in the US?

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