Colonial-spider
Guides
Cyrtophora citricola
Tropical Tent-web Spider, Tropical Tent-web Orbweaver
Cyrtophora citricola is a colonial orb-weaver spider in the family Araneidae, notable for building horizontal, non-adhesive tent-shaped webs rather than typical vertical orb webs. The species exhibits remarkable social flexibility, living either solitarily or in colonies where individual webs are interconnected. Native 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 sexual dimorphism and has become significant in agricultural contexts both as a pest and as a potential biological control agent.
Metepeira
labyrinth spiders, labyrinth orb-weavers
Metepeira is a genus of small orb-weaving spiders in the family Araneidae, first described by F. O. Pickard-Cambridge in 1903. The genus contains 44 species distributed from Argentina to Canada, with highest diversity in western North America and Mexico. These spiders construct distinctive webs combining a small orb web with a tangled, labyrinthine snare surrounding a thimble-like retreat. Some species exhibit facultative colonial behavior, with individuals interlacing webs over large areas under conditions of high prey availability.
Metepeira spinipes
Metepeira spinipes is a colonial orb-weaving spider in the family Araneidae, ranging from southern Oregon through Mexico. Unlike typical solitary orb weavers, this species exhibits flexible social behavior, forming colonies that vary from solitary individuals to aggregations of several hundred spiders with interconnected webs. Mature females measure 5.5–7.2 mm in body length, while males are smaller at 3–4.5 mm. The species shows pronounced seasonal colony dynamics, with foundation in spring, peak size in late summer, and decline in fall.