''Poecilopachys australasia'', commonly known as the two-spined spider, is an Australian orb-weaving spider which has also been recorded in New Zealand since the early 1970s. The spider is nocturnal, spinning a cart-wheel-shaped web at night which it consumes in the morning. Females can be commonly found on the undersides of citrus tree leaves during the day.

Distribution

Two-spined spiders are native to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, and were first noted in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, New Zealand, in 1971. Since their introduction to New Zealand, the spiders have spread south; they are now common in the northern half of the South Island, and have been found as far south as

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

Description

Females are about 8 mm in length and brightly coloured: the upper surface of the abdomen is yellow and olive with two white horn-like 'spines' that give this spider its common name. The front of the abdomen has a broad band of cream and yellow, and the rear has an upward pointing chevron marking against a red/yellow background. Adult males are much smaller (2.5–3 mm) and more difficult to find. They lack the horns and the bright colours of an adult female, and at first were thought to be a different species and named ''Cyrtarachne setosa''.

Breeding behavior

In an Auckland garden, four males were observed gathering around the female while the female stroked one, which was directly in front of her, with her legs. However no actual transfer of sperm was observed. Females can be found guarding a small, papery, brown, spindle-shaped egg sac.

References

External links

Two-spine spider
on the website of the

Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. ''Te Papa Tongarewa'' translates literally to "container of treasures" or in full "container of treasured things and people that spring fr ...

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1647489 Araneidae Spiders of Australia Spiders of New Zealand Spiders described in 1833