Leaf-curling Orbweavers - Family: Phonognathidae
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The Leaf-curling Orbweavers are found mainly in Europe, North America, Australia and South America. Sightings from elsewhere such as Africa and Eastern Asia are mostly uncorroborated. A total of 28 species are arranged into five genera, eight species from three genera may be found in the Northern Rivers. The family was first described by Eugene Simon, the French naturalist, in 1894.
These spiders have the unusual habit of curling up a leaf using their silk and thus creating a shelter for themselves. The curled leaf nest is occupied by a pair of male and female spiders and is commonly affixed somewhere in the web. This behaviour is not limited to Phonognathidae though as spiders from the new Genus: Leviana (Subfamily: Araneinae, Family: Araneidae) create curled leaf nests as well. |
Male Leaf-curling Orbweavers move in with their female partner while she is still a juvenile. Upon the female reaching maturity mating occurs and the eggs are usually placed in another curled leaf which is kept in the web near the home nest. Males are usually smaller than females and are always at risk of being eaten by their female partner. Phonognathids are fairly common spiders and are mostly encountered during the warmer months, they do not normally live beyond one year.
From a taxonomic perspective the Phonognathidae have historically been a rather unsettled family. Genera and species have been shunted from Araneidae to Phonognathidae and back again regularly. As of 2023 it is probably fair to say there is still no real concensus on the taxonomic arrangement of the family as a whole. |
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With adult females reaching a length of about 8 - 10 mm, and males generally no more than just over half that, the Leaf-curling Orbweavers are by no means large spiders. Their legs are usually similarly coloured to the cephalothorax whereas the bulbous abdomen stands out with its bold pattern and, often, bright colouring. Naturally occurring in woodlands these orbweavers are also a common sight in urban areas. They are sometimes found in considerable numbers close together in a good sized bush or in low hanging foliage off a tree but are not communal. Each pair of spiders will have its' own web and the web is maintained, rather than rebuilt every day. These spiders are most active during the daytime.
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Artiphex melanopyga (possible occurrence)
Deliochus humilis
Stripey Deliochus Spider - Deliochus idoneus
Beautiful Deliochus Spider - Deliochus pulchra
Deliochus zelivira
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Leaf-curling Spider - Phonognatha graefei
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C 663 - E.Beringen
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Phonognatha melania
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Phonognatha tanyodon
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Taxonomy:
Phylum: Arthropoda (Arthropods)
> Subphylum: Chelicerata (Chelicerates)
> Class: Arachnida (Arachnids)
> Order: Aranea (Spiders)
> Suborder: Araneomorphae (Typical Spiders)
> Infraorder: Entelegynea (Entelegyne Spiders)
> Superfamily: Araneoidea (Araneoid Spiders)
> Family: Phonognathidae (Leaf-curling Orbweavers)
> Genus: Artiphex
> Species: A. melanopyga ^
> Genus: Deliochus
> Species: D. humilis
> Species: D. idoneus - Stripey Deliochus Spider
> Species: D. pulchra - Beautiful Deliochus Spider
> Species: D. zelivira
> Genus: Phonognatha
> Species: P. graeffei - Leaf-curling Spider
> Species: P. melania
> Species: P. tanyodon
* = likely
^ = possibly
References and links:
> Framenau, V.W., Kuntner, M., (2022). 'The new Australian leaf-curling orb-weaving spider genus Leviana (Araneae, Araneidae).' Evolutionary Systematics 6(2): 103-133. https://doi.org/10.3897/evolsyst.6.83573
> Kuntner, M., Čandek, K., Gregorič, M., Turk, E., Hamilton, C.A., Chamberland, L., Starrett, J., Cheng, R.C., Coddington, J.A., Agnarsson, I. and Bond, J. E., (2023). 'Increasing information content and diagnosability in family-level classifications.' Systematic Biology 72(4): 964-971. doi:10.1093/sysbio/syad021
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eug%C3%A8ne_Simon
https://www.murdoch.edu.au/news/articles/how-leaf-curling-spiders-pair-up-and-build-a-family-home
> Framenau, V.W., Kuntner, M., (2022). 'The new Australian leaf-curling orb-weaving spider genus Leviana (Araneae, Araneidae).' Evolutionary Systematics 6(2): 103-133. https://doi.org/10.3897/evolsyst.6.83573
> Kuntner, M., Čandek, K., Gregorič, M., Turk, E., Hamilton, C.A., Chamberland, L., Starrett, J., Cheng, R.C., Coddington, J.A., Agnarsson, I. and Bond, J. E., (2023). 'Increasing information content and diagnosability in family-level classifications.' Systematic Biology 72(4): 964-971. doi:10.1093/sysbio/syad021
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eug%C3%A8ne_Simon
https://www.murdoch.edu.au/news/articles/how-leaf-curling-spiders-pair-up-and-build-a-family-home
Photographic contributions:
Beringen, Erik. C 458 - C 548 - C 663.
Beringen, Erik. C 458 - C 548 - C 663.