Kingdom Animalia Class Arachnida Suborder Araneomorphae Scientific name Araneus illaudatus | Phylum Arthropoda Order Araneae Family Araneidae Rank Species | |
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Similar Araneus gemma, Araneus gemmoides, Araneus bradleyi, Araneus albotriangulus, Araneus nordmanni | ||
Araneus illaudatus, commonly called the Texas orb-weaver is a species of spider belonging to the family Araneidae. It has a rather restricted range in western Texas and eastern Arizona.
The female is a very large, hairy orb-weaver, up to 25 mm in length (excluding legs). The overall colour is a dirty white, sometimes with a pinkish tinge. A distinctive feature is the presence of two roughly triangular dark patches at the front of the abdomen, each with a small white spot within. The male is very much smaller, only reaching 9 mm in length.
References
Araneus illaudatus Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA