Nursery Web Spiders - Family: Pisauridae
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The Pisauridae are family of medium to very large spiders with a worldwide distribution in temperate to warm climates. Some of the larger species may reach a bodylength of up to 28 mm. Male spiders do tend to be a bit smaller than females. As of November 2023, the family counts 361 species in 52 genera, with some 13 species from 6 genera found in the Northern Rivers. The family name was first used by the Frenchman naturalist, Eugene Simon in 1890 and is derived from the Latin name 'Pisaura' which itself is based on a Greek adjective meaning 'quick of the sea' probably referring to the ability of many species to walk on water with the same apparent ease as they do on land. Quite a few species are considered semi-aquatic.
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Female Pisaurids carry their egg-sacs not attached to their abdomen but rather secured underneath the body in between a thread attached to the chelicera and a thread attached to the spinnerets. When the eggs are about to hatch, the females build a tent-like structure from their silk, place the egg sac into it and then stay just outside of the 'tent' to protect the brood. It is this behaviour that has earned them their generic name and sets them apart from other families. As well as that, their legs are attached to the cephalothorax in such a way that the two front pairs point forward and the two rear-most pairs point backwards. Some species keep their legs two by two when at rest. And, they have rigid, non-flexing tarsi.
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The Genus: Dolomedes contains more than a quarter of all Pisaurid spiders as well as most of the largest species. (females may reach up to 28-30 mm body length with a legspan of 80 - 100 mm.) The genus is commonly known as Fishing Spiders and as the name suggests the largest among them are capable of catching small fish. They sit on the lookout at the edge of a water body and move quickly accross the water when they spot any ripples made by their prey. The spider uses its' foremost legs to grab it from underneath the surface, and, once caught, the prey is envenomated and consumed These spiders can also submerge themselves during which occassion they rely on a thin film of air caught by their body hair to breathe.
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Tree-wolf Fishing Spider - Dendrolycosa icadia
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White-banded Fishing Spider - Dolomedes albicomus
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Dolomedes briangreenei
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C 1316 - E.Beringen
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Crafty Fishing Spider - Dolomedes facetus
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Dolomedes instabilis
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Dolomedes venmani
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Elise's Fishing Spider - Dolomedes vicque
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Mangromedes kochi
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Giant Water Spider - Megadolomedes australianus
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Megadolomedes trux
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Masked Wood Sprite - Ornodolomedes benrevelli
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Ornodolomedes mickfanningi
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Lovely Fishing Spider - Perenethis venusta
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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: Lycosoidea (Wolf Spiders and Allies)
> Family: Pisauridae (Nursery Web Spiders)
> Genus: Dendrolycosa
> Species: D. icadia - Tree-wolf Fishing Spider
> Genus: Dolomedes (Fishing Spiders)
> Species: D. albicomus - White-banded Fishing Spider
> Species: D. briangreenei
> Species: D. facetus - Crafty Fishing Spider
> Species: D. instabilis
> Species: D. venmani
> Species: D. vicque - Elise's Fishing Spider
> Genus: Mangromedes
> Species: M. kochi
> Genus: Megadolomedes
> Species: M. australianus - Giant Water Spider
> Species: M. trux
> Genus: Ornodolomedes (Rainforest Sprites)
> Species: O. benrevelli - Masked Wood Sprite
> Species: O. mickfanningi
> Genus: Perenethis
> Species: P. venusta - Lovely Fishing Spider
* = likely
^ = possibly
Phylum: Arthropoda (Arthropods)
> Subphylum: Chelicerata (Chelicerates)
> Class: Arachnida (Arachnids)
> Order: Aranea (Spiders)
> Suborder: Araneomorphae (Typical Spiders)
> Infraorder: Entelegynea (Entelegyne Spiders)
> Superfamily: Lycosoidea (Wolf Spiders and Allies)
> Family: Pisauridae (Nursery Web Spiders)
> Genus: Dendrolycosa
> Species: D. icadia - Tree-wolf Fishing Spider
> Genus: Dolomedes (Fishing Spiders)
> Species: D. albicomus - White-banded Fishing Spider
> Species: D. briangreenei
> Species: D. facetus - Crafty Fishing Spider
> Species: D. instabilis
> Species: D. venmani
> Species: D. vicque - Elise's Fishing Spider
> Genus: Mangromedes
> Species: M. kochi
> Genus: Megadolomedes
> Species: M. australianus - Giant Water Spider
> Species: M. trux
> Genus: Ornodolomedes (Rainforest Sprites)
> Species: O. benrevelli - Masked Wood Sprite
> Species: O. mickfanningi
> Genus: Perenethis
> Species: P. venusta - Lovely Fishing Spider
* = likely
^ = possibly
References and links:
> Simon, E. (1890a). Arachnological studies. 22nd Memory. XXXIV. Study on the arachnids of Yemen. Annals of the Entomological Society of France (6) 10 : 77-124.
> Thorp, J.H., Rogers, D.C. (Editors), (2015). 'Thorp and Covich's Freshwater Invertebrates.' (Fourth Edition), Academic Press, ISBN 9780123850263.
https://ednieuw.home.xs4all.nl/australian/Pisauridae/Pisauridae.html
https://www.museum.qld.gov.au/collections-and-research/memoirs/nature-60/mqm-n60-21-raven-hebron
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolomedes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nursery_web_spider
> Simon, E. (1890a). Arachnological studies. 22nd Memory. XXXIV. Study on the arachnids of Yemen. Annals of the Entomological Society of France (6) 10 : 77-124.
> Thorp, J.H., Rogers, D.C. (Editors), (2015). 'Thorp and Covich's Freshwater Invertebrates.' (Fourth Edition), Academic Press, ISBN 9780123850263.
https://ednieuw.home.xs4all.nl/australian/Pisauridae/Pisauridae.html
https://www.museum.qld.gov.au/collections-and-research/memoirs/nature-60/mqm-n60-21-raven-hebron
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolomedes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nursery_web_spider
Photographic Contributions:
Beringen, Erik. C 1316.
Beringen, Erik. C 1316.