| The Australian Wonder Book of Knowledge - [Home] |
Riddle of the St. Andrew's Cross Queen of Spinners |
The Mouse SpiderPossibly the most widely distributed of the large Mygalomorph spiders are the two so-called mouse spiders (Missulena occatoria and insignis). The name mouse spider probably has its origin in the unlined burrow of large diameter excavated by the female and which may extend underground to a depth of several feet. The males of these spiders differ so greatly from their mates that they were for long believed to be a distinct species named Eriodon rubrocapitatum, or the red-headed spider. It• is only recently that their true relationship has been satisfactorily cleared up. The male, in both species, is but a fraction of the size and weight of his stoutly-built mate. He has long and slender legs, the cephalothorax (head and thorax combined and fused into one piece) is a bright red, and the abdomen is a bluish-black to a distinctly blue tint. It is a very beautiful spider. The female, on the other hand, is wholly dark brown —in' insignis the head is rather reddish —and very stoutly built, with short legs. The head and fang-bases are exceptionally broad. The male is active and alert, and is usually found crawling over the surface of the soil; the female is sluggish and usually remains within her burrow during daylight hours unless disturbed by digging. Neither sex has been re-corded as harmful to man, but both should be treated with respect.
|
| Wonder Book of Knowledge |