Cyrtophora citricola

(Forsskål, 1775)

Tropical Tent-web Spider, Tropical Tent-web Orbweaver

Cyrtophora citricola is a colonial -weaver in the Araneidae, notable for building horizontal, non-adhesive tent-shaped webs rather than typical vertical orb webs. The exhibits remarkable social flexibility, living either solitarily or in colonies where individual webs are interconnected. to Africa, Asia, and parts of Europe, it has expanded to the Americas since 2000, including Florida and Puerto Rico. Females reach 10 mm in body length while males are markedly smaller at 3 mm. The species shows pronounced and has become significant in agricultural contexts both as a pest and as a potential agent.

Cyrtophora citricola by no rights reserved, uploaded by 0959kedi. Used under a CC0 license.

Cyrtophora citricola by no rights reserved, uploaded by Anna C. Used under a CC0 license.

Tropical tent-web spider (Cyrtophora citricola) by RudiSteenkamp. Used under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Cyrtophora citricola: /ˌsɪrtəˈfɔːrə ˌsɪtrɪˈkoʊlə/

These audio files are automatically generated. While they are not always 100% accurate, they are a good starting point.

Identification

Distinguished from typical Araneidae by horizontal, tent-shaped, non-adhesive web structure rather than vertical sticky web. Differs from by broader cephalic structures than Manogea and specific arrangement on . In some regions may be confused with Mecynogea lemniscata. Web structure is primary field diagnostic: thick strand barrier above horizontal orb, thinner barrier below, creating mesh-like appearance without viscid spiral.

Images

Habitat

Highly adaptable to diverse environments. Most prevalent in olive orchards and undergrowth. Found in tropical agricultural operations, ornamental trees, fruit trees, and various flowering plants including Eugenia . In Florida, builds webs on canal bridges from Everglades National Park to east coast. Prefers to build webs in forks between branches and leaves. Cannot survive temperatures below -1°C.

Distribution

to warmer parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Established in Australia, Rica, Hispaniola, Colombia. to Florida (first recorded 2000), Puerto Rico (2008), Cuba (2003), Haiti (1998). Expanding range in Southern United States. Global distribution broader than close relatives which are regionally restricted.

Seasonality

Active from middle of summer to beginning of fall. mate between June and September. foraging with daytime inactivity. Colony dynamics show cyclical patterns of growth and decline with regional asynchrony; seasonal effects differ between years.

Diet

Preys on small to sized including , , , , , and . Captures using web deflection technique: fly into upper mesh layer and are deflected into web below. Four distinct attack sequences observed depending on prey , involving combinations of biting and wrapping in .

Life Cycle

disperse or build own webs off maternal webs after four days; less likely to leave in larger webs. Mothers feed offspring; sibling aggression increases when scarce, promoting early . sacs 12–20 mm diameter, bluish-green, laid in chains up to 10 sacs containing 100–200 flat elliptical eggs each. Females guard egg sacs by resting directly underneath. Solitary females produce up to 20% more eggs than colonial females, possibly due to trade-off with protection and reduced in colonies.

Behavior

: foraging and capture occur at night; daytime spent idle and concealed from . Web jerking (quick pulling of with leg) and web shaking (rapid downward leg motions causing web vibration) used for prey location, signal transmission, dislodging stuck prey, and deterring . When attacked, drops to ground to or pulls legs inward toward . Exhibits thermoregulative positioning during hot periods to minimize sun exposure.

Ecological Role

of agricultural pest . Potential agent for ( of ) and Tuta absoluta (tomato pest). Colony webs may reduce airflow to covered plants causing damage. including Argyrodes argyrodes and Argyrodes gibbosus steal and ; Holocnemus pluchei builds webs off C. citricola webs and preys on . Egg sacs parasitized by Pediobius pyrgo and Philolema palanichamyi , reducing spiderling by approximately 60%.

Human Relevance

Significant agricultural impact both positive and negative. Negative: dense webs damage citrus, coffee, and ornamental plants by restricting airflow; classified as important agricultural pest in Dominican Republic. Control efforts include high-pressure water sprayers and chemical treatments. Positive: investigated as agent for multiple pests. Expanding presence in Florida has made it common backyard nuisance.

Similar Taxa

Mecynogea lemniscataMay be confused with C. citricola in some regions; distinguished by web structure and abdominal arrangement
Manogea speciesCongeneric -weavers; C. citricola has broader cephalic structures
Typical Araneidae orb-weaversC. citricola differs fundamentally in building horizontal non-adhesive tent-webs rather than vertical sticky webs with viscid spiral