ONH

Cross Orbweaver

Araneus diadematus

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  • Content Slide
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    1 - Cross Orbweaver, Araneus diadematus, female on a web. It is typical of many spiders to hang on a web with the dorsal side down, as in this photo.

    08/22/2008 Heart O' the Hills Area, Olympic National Park, Washington

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    2 - Cross Orbweaver, female on a web, ventral side.

    08/22/2008 Heart O' the Hills Area, Olympic National Park, Washington

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    3 - Cross Orbweaver male on a web, dorsal side.

    08/22/2008 Heart O' the Hills Area, Olympic National Park, Washington

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    4 - Cross Orbweaver male on a web, ventral side.

    08/22/2008 Heart O' the Hills Area, Olympic National Park, Washington

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    5 - Cross Orbweaver, female on a rhododendron.

    10/19/2011 Heart O' the Hills Area, Olympic National Park, Washington

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    6 - Cross Orbweavers, pre-mating behavior.

    10/19/2011 Heart O' the Hills Area, Olympic National Park, Washington

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    7 - Cross Orbweavers mating.

    10/19/2011 Heart O' the Hills Area, Olympic National Park, Washington

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    8 - Cross Orbweaver spiderlings. The spiderlings cluster together in a mutual web.

    07/18/2011 Heart O' the Hills Area, Olympic National Park, Washington

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    9 - Cross Orbweaver spiderlings. If the spiderlings are disturbed, they suddenly disperse on the web.

    07/18/2011 Heart O' the Hills Area, Olympic National Park, Washington

  • Content Slide

10 - Cross Orbweavers, Araneus diadematus, mating. The male approaches cautiously, then transfers sperm and springs away. The video plays first at normal speed, then repeats at 25% speed.

Cross Orbweavers, or common garden spiders, Araneus diadematus, build iconic large, flat webs. Like with all spiders, mating is chancy for the male, as he may be seen as prey. The video, slide 10, shows the complete mating sequence, with the male approaching cautiously, then very quickly transferring sperm and jumping away.

Read more on spider mating at The Animal Communication Project.

Early in The Shooting Star (1942), part of The Adventures of Tintin, Tintin looks through a telescope and sees what he thinks is a giant space spider. Turns out the spider is on the telescope lens. Professor Phostle identifies it as Araneus diadematus, the common garden spider.

In 1973, two Araneus diadematus—named Arabella and Anita—flew to space on the Space Shuttle in a student-initiated experiment.