Progradungula carraiensis
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| iCarrai cave spider | ||||||||||||||||
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| Progradungula carraiensis Forster & Gray, 1979 |
The cribellate Carrai cave spider (Progradungula carraiensis) is only known from the moist forests of the Carrai Plateau in northern New South Wales.
These spiders are 8 to 12mm long, with long and slender legs. They live in the limestone caves of the Carrai Plateau. They specialize in insects that feed on bat guano.
To catch prey, they build a special web with an upper network of threads attached to the rock walls. This supports a small (25x6mm) platform made of cribellate silk. The spider sits head down on the platform and extends its front legs until the enlarged tarsal claws on their front legs are just above the ground. With these, they then scoop their prey into their web, which wraps around the insect.
