For months I was intrigued by flat cushion like webs Which spread across the ground from the base of a low plant in open rush country. At first I attempted to return to a web after the dew had gone to find that it had disappeared. I then tagged the spot and returned again to find a small hole in the ground and realised that the spider ate its web each morning to recycle the precious silk for a new evening web.
I returned again with the next dew with a supply of flies and pill bugs and almost froze my butt off dropping them into webs and hoping to see a magnificent trapdoor type spider to emerge. After much waiting, I discovered that the occupant was an exceptionally shy and squirty specimen, which hunted prey several times its size, but disappeared whenever I tried to take a photo.
Patience prevailed and I was able to identify the spider as a  Corasoides species.
They are also known as Parachute Spiders.

Tent web spiders belong to the orb weaver family Araneidae, but do not produce typical vertical circular orb webs. They have non sticky horizontal webs, with a cone shaped arrangement of silken threads above that contains a central silky mass that is used as a retreat, nursery and rubbish dump.
Webs are common in sedges and low  shrubs on open country, and are easily seen on dewy mornings
The spider approaches its prey from the underside of the web, and cuts out the piece of web containing its prey to feed.

Greetings fellow Foxies,
These are my favourite spiders. Hairy, thrilling and relatively harmless. Huntsman spiders are in the Sparassidae family and are the large ‘hairy scary’ spiders that absolutely terrify people when they scuttle out from behind a curtain or the sun visor in the car. In reality, Australian huntsman spiders are a fascinating group with 13 genera and 94 described species. Many huntsman spiders live socially in large family groups with the mothers showing extraordinary maternal instinct. These large, hairy grey-brown spiders have flattened bodies and are found throughout Australia, preferring to live outside under the bark of trees or under rocks and logs on the ground. They are typically long-legged (females can reach sizes up to 15cm across the legs) with forward facing legs, and are known for their scuttling sideways gait. These sure-footed and agile spiders are nocturnal and sometimes seen indoors at night, hunting for insects. They have keen eyesight and are good hunters, running down and pouncing on their prey. Despite their size, they are not known to inflict a serious bite on humans.
Recently I noticed a webby suture in bark of a dead sheoak, and opened it to find a mass of baby huntsman spiders, and then the mum that was huge but quite docile as I edged her into position for a photo.

Recently I found a huntsman female guarding her egg sac on the underside of a piece of bark. She kept her ground despite the movement. Note the lovely pattern of silk attachment threads.




The wonderful huntsman species below that I found on a rock sheoak trunk was amazingly well camouflaged. As it was smaller, with a domed carapace, and the abdomen is not as flat, I suspect that it was a badge huntsman; Neosparassus Sp.
These have a conspicuous colour pattern un the underside of the abdomen, but I couldn't see the underside.

 These have a conspicuous colour pattern un the underside of the abdomen, but I couldn't see the underside.

Greetings fellow foxies
The wolf spider (genus Lycosidae) is the most commonly seen spider in the garden. They are less visible in the bush during the day, but their gleaming eyes are visible at night by torch light.
Wolf spiders are robust, agile hunters that live on the ground in leaf litter or burrows. They have eight eyes, four small ones lower down on the face, two large eyes above looking forward and two large eyes further back looking upward.

 The surface colours are mostly browns and greys with some distinctive surface markings. One pair of eyes is unusually large. Lycosids live in burrows in the ground but frequently leave their burrows to stalk ground-dwelling insects. Females sometimes drag an egg sac behind them or carry their spiderlings on their back. Spiders occupying their burrows will often be seen just inside the entrance, which is sometimes fitted with a door or a collar of leaf litter.
The huge mum below with her spiderlings were nearly sucked up by the vacuum cleaner today.

Other spiders may be mistaken for wolf spiders. To see this group click here

Greetings fellow Foxies,
I found this little beauty (lychas marmoreus) under a slab at the Claypit. Scorpions are arachnids like spiders, and are often feared, but before you faint or scream, note that it is only 4cm long, no more dangerous than an ant or bee and hard to find.

This is a nocturnal hunter that has a pectine (comb-like sensory system to detect prey) and 10 eyes (2 on top and 5 tiny ones each front side) that only detect light or dark. They also have 8 book lungs that are quite different to ours.
They grab their prey with front claws, sting it with the tail then suck it dry like a spider
A delicate and wonderful creature to be admired then left alone