Little Monsters - Part 30: Redback Spider!

Redback spiders (Latrodectus hasselti) are native to Australia but can now be found in various cities around the world thanks to spreading via shipping containers, Osaka being a principal port of Japan has an established population of these spiders.

Above an immature female Redback has captured a June Bug larva. While the Redback is a medium sized spider it can prey on large potentially much stronger prey because of its renowned poison, which it uses to quickly dispatch insects and other small creatures that stumble into its web. The venom which can seriously harm humans though no fatalities have been reported since the development of an antivenom in 1956, though the absolute effectiveness of the antivenom appears to be contested. Source: Wikipedia.

This is the distinctive red stripe on the abdomen which makes these spiders very easy to identify. Some white striations can be seen on the sides, these white patches will disappear when the spider is fully mature. To the right of the frame is a male redback spider. They are much smaller than the females and travel more looking for mates.

I'm not sure if this male spider is mature yet, it still retains much of the white coloring of the younger spiders. However, we can be reasonably sure that it is a male, the palps at the front are much larger and developed to pass sperm to the female during mating. Females need to be approached very carefully, a wrong step and rather than seeing the male as a potential suitor, it becomes an appetizer.

Compared to the male, the palps of the female are quite small.

Females tend to stay in one place accumulating egg sacs and dessicated carcasses. It is fortunate that the webs and the spider itself are easy to identify. The web tends to be tangled, low to the ground and often in holes and drainage tubes in cement walls. In the daytime the spiders tend to stay out of sight in the depths of their lairs, at night they can be seen lurking on the web.
The spider itself of course is black with a bold red stripe and very long, thin, and smooth legs.

Like the related Black Widow spider, the redback also has a red patch on the underside of the abdomen.

Needless to say: DO NOT PLAY WITH THESE SPIDERS

They almost always stay in their web and most bites happen when people disturb them by putting hands or feet into dark holes for no good reason.

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Also, if you like macro photography, check out some of the earlier posts in this series.