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Avondale (Delena cancerides)

Avondale spider of the huntsman spider family acquired its name after its place of origination, Auckland’s Avondale city. Also known as social hunstamn or flat huntsman spider, they are mostly indegenous throughout Australia.

Scientific Classification

Avondale Spider

 

Physical Description and Identification

Adults

Size: Females are 0.98-1.26 inches (2.4-3.2 cm) long and males are 0.79-0.98 inches (2.0-2.4 cm)

Color:  They have a brown body.

Other Characteristic Features: They have a brown hairy body and long leg span.

Eggs

Female avondale spiders produce a flat and oval egg sac and subsequently lay around 200 eggs in them. Few spiders even make a silken base for the sac just before the egg-laying process and once all eggs are released, they carry the sac and discard the silken base. The egg sac is often carried by mother spiders.

Spiderlings

Young Avondale spiders come out of the eggs with a pale complexion. Sometimes, the mother spider moistens the egg sac and then tears it open to make the emerging of young spiders smooth and hassle-free. After coming out of the eggs, the spiderlings stay a few weeks with their mothers.

The Web

This species of spider does not make any webs as it directly hunts down insects.

Are Avondale Spiders Venomous

The Avondale spiders are not detrimental for people, but their bite results in pain, headache, inflammation, irregularity in pulse rate, and vomiting. But, the reason for their bite as to why they exhibit such aggressive behavior has not been determined, except for female spiders who are extremely protective of their eggs and can be violent towards any potential threats.

Avondale Spider Image

Quick Facts

Other Names Social huntsman spider, flat huntsman spider
Distribution Australia and New Zealand
Habitat Barks, logs, and rocks
Diet Insects
Lifespan Around 2 Years
IUCN Conservation Status Not listed

Did You Know

  • The species has been featured in several films, like Spider-Man, (2002), Arachnophobia, (1990), and Napoleon (1995 ). Despite being harmless, all of these movies have exhibited the spider having venomous bites.
  • The spider has been dedicated to a sculpture, displayed at the front of the Avondale shopping center in New Zealand.
  • French scientist and civil servant, Charles Athanase Walckenaer described this genus in 1837.

Images Credits: Collections.tepapa.govt.nz, Qph.fs.quoracdn.net

Avondale spider of the huntsman spider family acquired its name after its place of origination, Auckland’s Avondale city. Also known as social hunstamn or flat huntsman spider, they are mostly indegenous throughout Australia.

Avondale Spider

 

Physical Description and Identification

Adults

Size: Females are 0.98-1.26 inches (2.4-3.2 cm) long and males are 0.79-0.98 inches (2.0-2.4 cm)

Color:  They have a brown body.

Other Characteristic Features: They have a brown hairy body and long leg span.

Eggs

Female avondale spiders produce a flat and oval egg sac and subsequently lay around 200 eggs in them. Few spiders even make a silken base for the sac just before the egg-laying process and once all eggs are released, they carry the sac and discard the silken base. The egg sac is often carried by mother spiders.

Spiderlings

Young Avondale spiders come out of the eggs with a pale complexion. Sometimes, the mother spider moistens the egg sac and then tears it open to make the emerging of young spiders smooth and hassle-free. After coming out of the eggs, the spiderlings stay a few weeks with their mothers.

The Web

This species of spider does not make any webs as it directly hunts down insects.

Are Avondale Spiders Venomous

The Avondale spiders are not detrimental for people, but their bite results in pain, headache, inflammation, irregularity in pulse rate, and vomiting. But, the reason for their bite as to why they exhibit such aggressive behavior has not been determined, except for female spiders who are extremely protective of their eggs and can be violent towards any potential threats.

Avondale Spider Image

Quick Facts

Other Names Social huntsman spider, flat huntsman spider
Distribution Australia and New Zealand
Habitat Barks, logs, and rocks
Diet Insects
Lifespan Around 2 Years
IUCN Conservation Status Not listed

Did You Know

  • The species has been featured in several films, like Spider-Man, (2002), Arachnophobia, (1990), and Napoleon (1995 ). Despite being harmless, all of these movies have exhibited the spider having venomous bites.
  • The spider has been dedicated to a sculpture, displayed at the front of the Avondale shopping center in New Zealand.
  • French scientist and civil servant, Charles Athanase Walckenaer described this genus in 1837.

Images Credits: Collections.tepapa.govt.nz, Qph.fs.quoracdn.net

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