Araneidae is a large, cosmopolitan spider family that includes many species in most parts of the world. These spiders are commonly known as orb-weaver spiders or common orb weavers. The genus Argiope in the Araneidae family is a genus of big, long-legged spiders with interesting, often striking coloration. The upper side of the abdomen is often brightly coloured, commonly with silver, gold, or yellow and black. Many species mimic wasps with the color of their stripes and other markings. In this post, I'm about to show you, through many photographs, two Argiope species that live in my area, the Mediterranean part of Europe. Depending on your feelings towards arachnids or your eventual arachnophobia, you'll see these spiders as very beautiful, mildly amusing, fairly interesting, or as nightmare fuel. In all species from the genus Argiope, the sexual dimorphism is quite visible. The males are much smaller and significantly different. Both spiders in this post are big, robust females. You'll see them resting on the web, enveloping the prey in silk, and feeding on various insects. With all that said, I would like to tell you now the names of the species and write a few words about each of them.
And here they are. In this opening picture, you can see both spiders with their respective scientific names.
Argiope lobata is a relatively rare spider here in my area. I mean, it is quite common in some places, but those places aren't many, as far as I have noticed. This species constructs orb webs in open grassland areas with sparse shrubs or robust herbaceous plants. The best chance to find it here where I live is to visit Marlera, the coastal area I often post about. The webs are usually placed low in shrubby vegetation sturdy enough to bear their weight.
Argiope bruennichi is one of the most common spiders here where I live. Its common name is wasp spider. This spider builds webs in various places and at various altitudes; in grassy areas, the web is usually spread between stems of long grass just above ground level. But I saw webs higher on the grass as well. In shrubby areas, I often see webs high on the shrubs. I never saw this spider in the woods, but I encounter it sometimes on the lower branches of the small trees at the edge of the woodland. They are quite common in gardens, as well. The distinctive yellow, white, and black markings on Argiope bruennichi mimic the color scheme seen on some wasps. And now, enjoy the ton of photographs depicting these two interesting species in various poses. To get them, I used the Canon EOS 350D camera with the Canon RF 100mm f/2.8 L IS MACRO lens and the Canon Macro Ring Lite MR-14 EXII. Have a good viewing.
And that's it. The post ends here. Hope you aren't afraid of big spiders watching you from your PC monitor. I heard a New Age theory that says: If you're watching a photograph of a spider long enough, that specific spider will manifest itself in your bed. It will crawl up your feet early in the morning. If you stare at the same spider in the photograph intensely and with all the positive energy you can force yourself to produce for about five minutes, the spider will jump right into your blessed, smiling face. I don't know if that's true. I hope some of you will try and then tell me your experiences. Anyway, as always on Hive, the photographs are my work-THE END.
