Species profile—Arbanitis longipes (Brisbane tube spider)
Classification
Animalia (animals) → Arachnida (arachnids) → Idiopidae (idiopid trapdoor spiders) → Arbanitis longipes (Brisbane tube spider)
Sighting data
Species details
- Kingdom
- Animalia (animals)
- Class
- Arachnida (arachnids)
- Family
- Idiopidae (idiopid trapdoor spiders)
- Scientific name
- Arbanitis longipes Koch, 1874
- Common name
- Brisbane tube spider
- WildNet taxon ID
- 32083
- Alternate name(s)
- Brisbane trapdoor
- Conservation significant
- No
- Endemicity
- Native
- Pest status
- Venomous
- Short Notes
- Bite toxicity is unknown, the bite of a related species did not cause illness (Raven & Seeman 2007).
- Description
- This species is a moderately large, robust spider growing to a body length of 15-20mm. The carapace and legs are orange brown, with bands of long golden hairs on the carapace and dark brown bars down the sides of the legs. The abdomen is dark brown dorsally, a mottled brown laterally and entirely fawn ventrally. The sternum and mouthparts are red brown. Males differ from other idiopids in lacking a tibial spur and having long spines in 4-9 rows on the rear of the palpal tibial apophysis. (Raven & Wishart 2005).
- Distribution
- The reported distribution of this species is restricted to south eastern Queensland, occuring from Beerwah to Main Range National Park. The bulk of the known localities lie south of the Brisbane River from Capalaba to Ipswich. (Raven & Wishart 2005).
- Distributional limits
- -26.85, 152.95
-28.21667, 153.21667 - Range derivation
- Range derived from extent of the taxon's verified records
- Habitat
- This species of spider has been found in a wide range of habitats, occuring in rainforest, semi-evergreen vine thickets, open forest on clay or sand, roadside verges adjacent to paddocks and disturbed habitat adjacent to industrial areas. They are most abundant along roadside verges adjacent to rainforest. Spiders are generally found in lowland areas but have been recorded at elevations up to 870m at Mt Superbus. (Raven & Wishart 2005).
- Burrows and nests
- Females build a short (8-20cm long) sinuous burrow, some having a second entrance with a thin layer of soil covering the opening. The main entrance is inclined at 30° and lacks a door or tube-like extension, but has a widely flanged collar which may be adorned with leaves. Burrows are found in areas of exposed earth on flat ground and embankments without dense leaf litter. (Raven & Wishart 2005).
- Behaviour
- The Brisbane tube spider is terrestrial and nocturnal. Females are sedentary, building a short burrow within which they largely remain, moulting each year. Males are active yearlong wandering in search of females, with activity peaking in summer from November to April. It tends not to be aggressive. (Raven & Wishart 2005; Raven & Seeman 2007).
- Reproduction
- Little is known of the reproductive biology of this species. Mygalomorphs mate at most once a year, the female making an egg sac in the burrow. The young emerge and remain in the maternal burrow for one or two moults. The juveniles then disperse, making their own burrows nearby, usually within 30cm of the maternal burrow. Spiders mature after 5-7 years, at which point the males leave their burrow in search of females. When a male finds a female, he constructs a small silk mat on the ground and ejects his sperm onto it. From this mat he fills his papal bulbs (mating organs) and fertilises the female. The male is usually eaten by the female or dies soon after. Based on their size females of A. longipes may live up to 10 years. (Brunet 2000, Raven & Wishart 2005).
- Diet
- The diet of this species has not been reported. Trapdoor spiders feed mostly on ground-dwelling insects and other arthropods captured near the burrow entrance (Brunet 2000).
- Threatening processes
- Known: None
Suspected: Urban development (Raven & Wishart 2005). - Status notes
- A. longipes is a long-lived, highly sedentary animal with a relatively low fecundity which occurs in proximity to large and growing urban areas. This raises some concerns regarding its viability in the face of ongoing urban development and habitat loss. While live adults have been found in disturbed habitats, this may not be indicative of a viable population. (Raven & Wishart 2005).
- Notes
- Contributor: Danielle Hansen 3/02/2009; Wayne Martin 22/01/2010
- References
- Brunet, B. (2000) Spiderwatch: a guide to Australian spiders. Reed New Holland, Australia.
Raven, R. & Seeman, O. (2007). Arachnids. Pp. 31-67 in M. Ryan (ed.), Wildlife of Greater Brisbane. Queensland Museum, Brisbane.
Raven, R.J. & Wishart, G. (2005). The trapdoor spider Arbanitis L. Koch (Idiopidae: Mygalomophae) in Australia. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 51(2): 531-557.
Stanisic, J., Burwell, C., Raven, R., Monteith, G. & Baehr, B. (2005). Terrestrial Invertebrate Status Review Brisbane City. Queensland Museum, Brisbane. - Profile author
- Wayne E. Martin (22/01/2010)
Other resources
Data source
This profile data is sourced from the QLD Wildlife Data API using the Get species by ID function used under CC-By 4.0.
https://apps.des.qld.gov.au/species/?op=getspeciesbyid&taxonid=32083.
This information is sourced from the WildNet database managed by the Queensland Department of Environment and Science.
