Spiders of North Carolina

Arachnids of North Carolina

Order:
Scientific Name: Common Name:		Family (Alpha):

Larinioides sclopetarius - an orbweaver Araneidae Members:			NC Records	BugGuide Account	Public View

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Distribution Records
PDF

Vetting Levels

Adult phenology:
High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
Piedmont (Pd)
Coastal Plain (CP)

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synonym

taxonomic_comments

Pronounced lar-i-nee-OY-deez. Formerly genus Nuctenea

species_comment

Common names include Gray Cross Spider and Bridge spider. Formerly Araneus sericatus Clerck, 1757, Larinoides sclopetarius Roberts, 1985, Larinioides sericatus Šestáková, Marusik & Omelko, 2014 (revalidated, rejected)

id_comments

Darkest member of the genus, abdomen round oval, gray, brown or black with dark folium. There are thin white lines formed by conspicuous white hairs at the edge of the folium and surrounding a central dark mark at the front of the abdomen. L. sericatus have longer legs than the other two species in the genus, and it has a dark middle band on metatarsus IV. It also has a darker pattern & a carapace with more white on its borders. It is the least common of the three species. The Gray Cross spider male (sclopetarius) can be ID'd by the lack of the cluster of macrosetae, and tibia II is not swollen. Both other species have clusters of macrosetae on tibia II. Underside of abdomen has two yellow spots and two light colored dash marks.

total_length

Small to medium, female total body length 8-14 mm, male total body length 6-7 mm.

structural_features

silk_web

Medium to large web, up to 70 cm built on bridges and other man made structures near water. Sometimes building amid other spider webs.

fld_guide_descriptions

online_photos

prey

Insects that emerge from water at night, midges, mayflies, caddisflies, etc. Daytime prey include Greenhead flies in the Tabanus genus.

predators

Where the spider occurs, the Black and Yellow Mud Dauber, Sceliphron caementarium, is a primary predator.

behavior

Not strictly nocturnal, but where it is they sit in center of web at night, hide in retreat during the day. Daytime dispersing spiders drift around to new homes, and are sometimes attracted to lights to construct their evening webs. The bridge spider Larinioides sclopetarius is an extremely successful colonizer of cities worldwide and inhabits buildings near water in huge numbers. The spiders feed on insects that emerge from the water and are attracted to artificial lights, where the spiders build their webs. This species may be a great example of time period shifting as they often match their insect prey timing and can be diurnal or nocturnal. The bright spot pattern on underside of abdomen as seen in web is likely used as a lure to draw in insect prey. The bridge spider’s lure consists of yellow and orange re?ective hairs and pigments that produce a bright pattern sharply demarcated against the dark background of the spider’s thorax and abdomen. An insect attracted to the lure would ?y directly into the spider’s clutches. When the spider in its web faces a lamp, its lure faces the light, and viewed from the lamp, the light of the lure stands out against the blackness of the night.

distribution_reference

technical_reference

Spiders of North America - Bradley; Spiders of the Carolinas – Gaddy; Bugguide; Clerck 1757; https://www.researchgate.net/publication/309679071_Bridge_Spider_Gray_cross_spider_Larinioides_sclopetarius

adult_id

1 identifiable by photo 2 identifiable by photo of specific features and/or supplementary info 3 identifiable from specimen only

abundance

Seldom

distribution_comments

Seldom seen in NC northeastern coastal areas. Likely introduced into New England from Europe, distribution concentrated in the northeastern and northwestern United States and Canada. Adults can be active all year. Can be locally numerous.

checklist_mt_high
>=4,000 ft.

Regular	Frequent	Infrequent	Occasional	Seldom	Frequency Regular – almost always observed on given visit; >=90% chance of observation Frequent – usually observed on a given visit; >=50%<90% chance of observation Infrequent – observed less than 50% of visits; >=25%<50% chance of observation Occasional – observed on only on a small minority of visits; >=10%<25% chance of observation Seldom – not usually seen on visits; <10% chance of observation These terms refer to visits to appropriate habitats made at appropriate times of the year, making use of common sampling/observation methods. Under those conditions, Frequency refers to the chance of observing at least one individual on a given visit made anywhere within a particular region, or over multiple visits to a single site.

checklist_mt_low
<4,000 ft.

Regular	Frequent	Infrequent	Occasional	Seldom

checklist_pd
Piedmont

Regular	Frequent	Infrequent	Occasional	Seldom

checklist_cp
Coastal Plain

Regular	Frequent	Infrequent	Occasional	Seldom

habitat

Forest edge, found on tree trunks near water, buildings near water, structures, gates, boats and bridges. In some areas concentrated around lighted bridges, street lamps, etc.

observation_methods

Visual observation, sweep netting.

state_protection

NHP_ranks

NHP_status

status_comments

Photo Gallery for Larinioides sclopetarius an orbweaver
	Recorded by: Brian Bockhahn New Hanover Co. Comment:

Photo Gallery for Larinioides sclopetarius an orbweaver