Parawixia is a genus of orb-weaver spiders first described by F. O. Pickard-Cambridge in 1904.[2] Most species are found in the Neotropics but one species, Parawixia dehaani, is found in Australasia and tropical Asia as far west as India.[1]

Parawixia
Abandoned web orb-weaver (P. dehaani) in Taman Negara National Park, Malaysia
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Araneidae
Genus: Parawixia
F. O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1904[1]
Type species
P. destricta
Species

31, see text

Natural history

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Parawixia audax, one of the better known species, makes a large loose web, placing itself either in the center with its head down or in a retreat created from a rolled-leaf. This species builds webs 1 to 2 metres (3 ft 3 in to 6 ft 7 in) above the ground, but there are likely many more species farther up in the canopy that are rarely collected by usual means.

Parawixia bistriata builds its webs much higher from the ground, frequently found on telephone poles. It is known to be social, and all individuals in a colony are of the same age and size. During the day, they share a retreat where they cluster together.[3]

Species

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As of April 2019 it contains thirty-one species:[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Gloor, Daniel; Nentwig, Wolfgang; Blick, Theo; Kropf, Christian (2019). "Gen. Parawixia F. O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1904". World Spider Catalog Version 20.0. Natural History Museum Bern. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
  2. ^ Pickard-Cambridge, F. O. (1904), "Arachnida - Araneida and Opiliones", Biologia Centrali-Americana, Zoology
  3. ^ Levi, Herbert W. (1992). "Spiders of the orb-weaver genus Parawixia in America (Araneae: Araneidae)". Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology. 153 (1): 1–46.