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Photo#406831
Neoscona-esque Orbweaver, Male - Neoscona utahana - male

Neoscona-esque Orbweaver, Male - Neoscona utahana - Male
Austin, TX, USA, Travis County, Texas, USA
June 5, 2010
Size: 12mm retrospective guess
Neoscona crucifera? N. arabesca is common and wildly variable here. What does a male A. bicentenarius look like? Doesn't seem to be an image on BugGuide.

Images of this individual: tag all
Neoscona-esque Orbweaver, Male - Neoscona utahana - male Neoscona-esque Orbweaver, Male - Neoscona utahana - male

Moved tentatively
Moved from Orb Weavers. This is our best guess at this time base on range and pattern. It also matches up well the the female here


Esp. with those spotted femurs.

Moved
Moved from Spiders.

Moved
Moved from ID Request.

re: A. bicentenarius...
I'm not sure which Neoscona this guy is, but it's not A. bicentenarius. Those typically have some green-ness to them and pointed "shoulders". We do actually have a few here in the guide--> http://bugguide.net/node/view/2018/bgimage

 
Thanks Mandy. Can you find a
Thanks Mandy. Can you find a male among those photos? Do you know if we can be sure that a male has the twin humps? Or is dimorphism in spiders limited to size and color pattern? I have a bazillion photos of this spider, but not one of them is of a male.

 
Oops...
I guess I didn't check through those images before listing the link. I suppose I assumed there'd be at least one male among them... looks like I was wrong. All ladies. The males are either pretty elusive, or they're just not photographed very often. Even in scientific papers, there are way more females than males as far as collection samples go.

Anyways, yep the males also have the twin humps. I have a handful of print sources on this species, but as you probably already know, some papers are available online... here is a link to Levi 1971a. You'll find a description of the males there (coloration same as in females except for an occasional white diamond on dorsum...etc). Actually, that paper doesn't list the twin humps as a male characteristic for some reason, but it is. I have a print copy of Dondale & Redner (1) that does mention the paired anterolateral humps in males. I'd definitely have to go with Neoscona on this one.

 
Perfect, thank you! I'm goin
Perfect, thank you! I'm going to have to find a male A. bicentenarius. I'll have a chance over the next few days 'cause I'll be spidering at night, when the males are active.

 
Awesome!
We need a male here in the Guide really badly (as we both now know). A. bicentenarius is an eastern species, so I've never personally collected any before. They are so beautiful, though. I just worship them from afar, I suppose. For the time being, at least. :)

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