Stretch Spiders
Stretch Spiders
Tetragnatha
Arachnida
COMMON

Stats

Lifespan
Annual
Size
Small
Diet
Insectivore
Activity
Nocturnal
Social
Solitary
Biome
Freshwater wetland
Range
Worldwide
Movement
Walking
Breeding
Egg-laying
Defense
Camouflage
Status
Common

About

This elongated spider lives among blades of grass in tropical regions. It runs across water surfaces and hides by stretching its legs to mimic a thin plant stem.

Life cycle

  1. 1.
    egg sac
    A silk-wrapped egg sac shelters a clutch of eggs until the young are ready to emerge.
  2. 2.
    juvenile
    A spiderling emerges from the egg sac already in miniature adult form and starts catching prey almost immediately.
  3. 3.
    subadult
    A near-adult arachnid molts through several instars, growing larger and developing mature markings.
  4. 4.
    adult
    Fully grown after its final molt.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Arthropoda
Class
Arachnida
Order
Araneae
Family
Tetragnathidae
Genus
Tetragnatha