Messy Leaf Curling Spider - Deliochus zelivira
FAMILY ARANEIDAE
This page contains pictures and information about Messy Leaf Curling Spiders that we found in the Brisbane area, Queensland, Australia.
- Female body length 12mm, male 8mm
- This spider builds large messy retreat by curling a few green and dry leaves bound together by silks. Male and female can be found in the same retreat during breeding season. Males of this species are more often seen because they wandering around looking for females. Matured females are in the messy large retreat and hardly be seen.
- Mid summer Dec 2007 in Karawatha Forest, we saw this little spider wandering on the edge of a messy spider web. The web owner was hiding inside the curled leaf retreat.
- The spider builds messy web sheet as retreat on leaf.
- Young female look similar to male with larger abdomen. The dark brown strip patterns become paler in colour when the female grow and totally fade out when the matures.
Male
Young female
- The spider builds nest on large green leaf by half rolling the leaf. We found once there a female and a male inside the nest. Male is about 1/4 size of the female and look quite different.
- Female and male photos were taken on Aug 2008 in Karawatha Forest near the Lagoon.
- Reference:
- 1. Deliochus zelivira - The Find-a-spider Guide for Australian Spiders, University of Southern Queensland, 2008.
