Until recently, sightings of this rarely-seen Scorpion-tailed Spider (Arachnura melanura) could have been counted on one hand, then approximately fifty of them were found on one tree in our tropical fruit orchard. A star-apple fruit tree (Chrysophyllum cainito), with an abundant growth of epiphytes, was loaded, but given the amazing mimicry of a dead leaf, it is possible that in the [...]
I recently chanced upon a curious fluorescence out the corner of my eye, beneath the movement of a small black invertebrate. Upon closer inspection, I was delighted to see the Northern Jewelled Spider (Gasteracantha fornicata), weaving its fluorescent green egg-sac. For many years I had wondered which spider was responsible for the moss-mimicking green pillows [...]
As a newcomer to the rainforest you will see a great many trees of incredible diversity, but you will be hard pressed to see the intricate and secretive wildlife. You really need to go with a local expert, someone who lives in the rainforest, to help you to see, say, the secret world of spiders. [...]
Deception in Daintree Rainforest - Spiders Knowing the rainforest so that we can present its values to visitors from around the world has become our infinite vocation. Secretive, obscure, cryptic, camouflaged, mimicking are terms that describe strategies of rainforest deception that are employed by many of our critters to avoid detection. The enrichment of our [...]
