General Description
Small cephalothorax, body broad with a two horn like projections protruding over the cephalothorax then tapering into a tail with a black tip. Body various shades of brown but most commonly fawn, with a black tip on the end of the abdomen. Legs and cephalothorax may be darker brown. Juveniles may be yellow through to pink. Females to 15 mm, male much smaller with no tail (2 mm).
Biology
The Scorpion-tailed Spider builds a permanent but incomplete orb web near the ground close to foliage. The web is suspended on an angle and has a V-shaped section missing from the top of the web. In late summer and autumn, the female produces a series of woolly yellowish egg sacs which she strings up in a line from the centre of the web to fill the missing section. The egg sacs are often camouflaged with debris and the spider sits at the bottom of the string in the centre of the web. The female spider can curl her tail up over her back like a scorpion if she is disturbed. The tip of the tail often has a number of black lobes which are soft and unable to sting or inflict any sort of wound.
Distribution
These spiders are widespread throughout Australia and are often found in large numbers near water.
Habitat
Most types of bushland, occasionally urban gardens.
More Information
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Animal Type
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Animal SubType
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Brief Id
Body fawn to brown; when disturbed the spider curls its tail up over the body similar to a scorpion.
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Maximum Size
15 mm
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Habitats
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Diet
Insectivore
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Hazards
Despite being called the Scorpion-tailed spider this species does not possess a sting. Bites are rare and not considered dangerous.
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Conservation Statuses
CITES: Not listed, EPBC Act 1999: Not listed, FFG Threatened List: Not listed, IUCN Red List: Not listed
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Web
Web
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Taxon Name
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Scientific Author
(Koch, 1872)
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Common Name
Scorpion-tailed Spider
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Kingdom
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Phylum
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Subphylum
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Class
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Order
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Infraorder
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Family
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Genus
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Species Name
higginsi