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N. clavipes Courtship
Golden orb web spider (Nephila clavipes) - Yasuni National Park, Ecuador
Take a close look, how many spiders do you see? There is the large frame filling spider that's hard to miss but there is also a small one perched on her abdomen! The huge individual is a female and the tiny spider on her abdomen is an adult male! This is an extreme example of sexual dimorphism, where the 2 sexes exhibit marked differences besides their reproductive organs. The males of this species are as small as 1/70th the size of a female! The male will actually live in the females web feeding on prey she captures, this close proximity means he will be ready when the female is ready to breed. After she molts, the female is receptive for ~48 hours, and that's when the male has his chance although he must be careful to charm her (shaking his abdomen and certain motions with the legs) lest he be eaten. Here we see a successful male with his big lady hanging out right next to her molted exoskeleton.
N. clavipes Courtship
Golden orb web spider (Nephila clavipes) - Yasuni National Park, Ecuador
Take a close look, how many spiders do you see? There is the large frame filling spider that's hard to miss but there is also a small one perched on her abdomen! The huge individual is a female and the tiny spider on her abdomen is an adult male! This is an extreme example of sexual dimorphism, where the 2 sexes exhibit marked differences besides their reproductive organs. The males of this species are as small as 1/70th the size of a female! The male will actually live in the females web feeding on prey she captures, this close proximity means he will be ready when the female is ready to breed. After she molts, the female is receptive for ~48 hours, and that's when the male has his chance although he must be careful to charm her (shaking his abdomen and certain motions with the legs) lest he be eaten. Here we see a successful male with his big lady hanging out right next to her molted exoskeleton.