Argiope savignyi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Argiope savignyi
yellow form from Costa Rica (female)
yellow form from Costa Rica (female)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Suborder: Araneomorphae
Family: Araneidae
Genus: Argiope
Species: A. savignyi
Binomial name
Argiope savignyi
Levi, 1968
silvery form (female)
silvery form (female)

Argiope savignyi is a species of orb-weaving spider that occurs from Mexico to Bolivia[1]. It was observed to capture and feed on the proboscis bat Rhynchonycteris naso in Costa Rica, totally encasing the bat in silk during the course of a day.[2]

A. savignyi sometimes spins a silk disc, sometimes a cruciate pattern, and sometimes combines both types[3].

The species is named after French zoologist Marie Jules César Savigny, in whose volumes the name Argiope was first published in 1825.

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ Platnick 2008
  2. ^ Timm & Losilla 2007
  3. ^ Herberstein et al. 2000

[edit] References

  • Herberstein, M.E.; Craig, C.L.; Coddington, J.A. & Elgar, M.A. (2000): The functional significance of silk decorations of orb-web spiders: a critical review of the empirical evidence. Biological Reviews 75: 649-669. Abstract
  • Timm, Robert M. & Losilla, Mauricio (2007): Orb-weaving Spider, Argiope savignyi (Araneidae), Predation on the Proboscis Bat Rhynchonycteris naso (Emballonuridae). Caribbean Journal of Science 43(2): 282-284. PDF
  • Platnick, Norman I. (2008): The world spider catalog, version 8.5. American Museum of Natural History.

[edit] Further reading

  • Levi, Herbert W. (1968): The spider genera Gea and Argiope in America (Araneae: Araneidae). Bull. Mus. comp. Zool. Harv. 136: 319-352.
  • Robinson, Michael H. & Robinson, Barbara (1977): Associations Between Flies and Spiders: Bibiocommensalism and Dipsoparasitism? Psyche 84: 150-157. PDF
  • Nentwig, Wolfgang (1985): Prey analysis of four species of tropical orb-weaving spiders (Araneae: Araneidae) and a comparison with araneids of the temperate zone. Oecologia 66(4): 580-594. doi:10.1007/BF00379353
  • Rovner, Jerome S. (1989): Submersion survival in aerial web-weaving spiders from a tropical wet forest. Journal of Arachnology 17: 242-245. PDF


This arachnid-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.