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Thursday 7 August 2014

ARANEUS DIADEMATUS - FEMALE - EPIGYNE


After being absent many days, it seems that Arry Arachnid, the female Araneus diadematus that I posted about earlier, is back.  She's woven a wonderfully elaborate web between the guttering under the roof and a hanging basket and her web is out of the way of my cat, Alfie, damaging it.


 




Araneus diadematus - female


I was confused by the protrusion under her abdomen but it seems that the flesh-coloured protrusion is called the epigyne and is the external genital structure of a female spider.








Flesh-coloured epigyne of Araneus diadematus

 





She dropped her meal (the black object near the bottom of the image, between her legs) when I started to photograph her and after putting up with me taking dozens of shots, she eventually got sick of me and retreated to the safety of somewhere under the house roof.