Posted on 10/26/2009 1:23:42 PM PDT by JoeProBono
Meet the newest odd couple of the animal kingdom: the giant female and tiny male of the largest web-spinning spider known to science: Nephila komaci.
The female of the species has a leg span of up to 5 inches (12 centimeters), while the male—which spends much of its time clambering on its partner's back—barely reaches an inch (2.5 centimeters), a new study says.Part of a well-known group of golden orb-weaver spiders—which can spin webs up to three feet (one meter) wide—N. komaci was first identified in a South African museum collection in 2000.
But it wasn't until a 2007 field survey, which discovered three individuals in South Africa's Tembe Elephant Park, that scientists knew the spider still existed in the wild.
The newfound spider, detailed October 20 in the journal PLoS One, is the first addition to the Nephila genus since 1879.
Largest Web-Spinner a Rarity
N. komaci is likely rare within its small habitats in South Africa and Madagascar, researchers say, and females are much less common than males.
Much is still unknown about the species' biology, but study co-author and spider expert Jonathan Coddington suspects the female evolved her extreme size to thwart smaller predators and to be able to lay more eggs....
The golden orb-weaver spider Nephila inaurata lies in wait on a web more than three feet (a meter) wide on the Indian Ocean island of Rodrigues in an undated picture. A related, newfound species, Nephila komaci, is now the largest web-spinning spider known to science, researchers said in October 2009.Photograph by M. Kuntner
Ewwww.... and I’m not talking about the spider.
Oh, thought this was about Soros/
Early ancestor of Shelub.
ANyone who’s interested enough in this thread to look at it, might also, be interested in seeing one of the best films of the last decade, David Cronenberg’s SPIDER, with Ralph Fiennes. SEE IT!
I dunno...after too much Jägermeister and beer celebrating the end of a two week wilderness camping trip sans female companionship she might have some appeal.
yuck! yuck! yuck!
cut that out
yuck
Funny but I bet Laz would hit it.
What a combination. I’ll check it out, thanks!
The spider or the woman?
God’ll get you for that. :)
In the dictionary after redundant it says see redundant.
Oh the splendid creations of he almighty...
Nothing could have evolved to something as perfect as the third picture.
Only a creator ( with a great sense of humor) could have done that.
Spider ping
The chick, I'd just hit.
Hey!
I think we have that same spider in eastern NC! Shudder. I was out chasing guinea hens with a flashlight—don’t ask—and almost ran into the web. The spider was as big as my hand, the color of a spotted crab, and the web was tent sized. More shudders.
The guineas are on their own from now on.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.