Poltys laciniosus

Fact Box Species: Poltys laciniosus (Helen Smith) (or perhaps Poltys noblei) Family: Araneidae formerly Argiopidae Body length: female: 9 mm male: 2 mm Habitat: This spider may build a small web at night but during the daylight hours it normally rests on dead twigs where its upright posture and good camouflage colours make it very difficult to see unless it moves Toxicity: Uncertain but this is not an aggressive spider and therefore probably is totally harmless to humans

Bands on legs Its web Well camouflaged Another female Another female Side view

The most obvious physical characteristic of this species is the way it adopts an upright posture with the long, finger-like top of its abdomen pointing vertically. Its camouflage colours make it very difficult to see when it is resting on a bark surface. On the other hand, it has distinctive yellow-orange bands on the insides of its legs which can only be seen when the legs are extended. Please not that some other Poltys species are very similar in appearance so identification to species is probably impossible for anyone who is not an expert arachnologist.

This species makes a fawn/grey egg sac which is attached to a dead twig.

Spider(s) with a very similar appearance: Poltys illepidus.

For more information on Australian Poltys species contact Helen Smith, Arachnology Section, The Australian Museum, 6 College Street, Sydney NSW 2010.