Largest fossil spider found yet.

dennilfloss

Past Lifer 1957-2014 In Memoriam
Oct 21, 1999
30,509
12
0
dennilfloss.blogspot.com
I like spiders. I line fossils. I definitely like spider fossils. :)

Here is the largest such fossil found yet, a female golden orb-weaver with a 6" leg-span. It was found in China and belongs to a new species called Nephila jurassica This find extends the range of the Nephila genus by 130 million years, which makes it the longest-ranging spider genus known yet. :)

0420spider.jpg


For comparison, here is an extant Nephila specimen.

http://www.floridanature.org/photos/Nephila_clavipes_5a,_Tallahassee_20021216.jpg

For once the whole academic paper is free, a rarity nowadays, so here it is for those interested. :)

http://rsbl.royalsocietypublishing....full?sid=d62866c0-1e79-4479-ae42-cb8e0b6e5c67
 

JTsyo

Lifer
Nov 18, 2007
12,012
1,125
126
I like spiders. I line fossils. I definitely like spider fossils. :)

Here is the largest such fossil found yet, a female golden orb-weaver with a 6" leg-span. It was found in China and belongs to a new species called Nephila jurassica This find extends the range of the Nephila genus by 130 million years, which makes it the longest-ranging spider genus known yet. :)

0420spider.jpg


For comparison, here is an extant Nephila specimen.

http://www.floridanature.org/photos/Nephila_clavipes_5a,_Tallahassee_20021216.jpg

For once the whole academic paper is free, a rarity nowadays, so here it is for those interested. :)

http://rsbl.royalsocietypublishing....full?sid=d62866c0-1e79-4479-ae42-cb8e0b6e5c67

Do you snort them afterwards? D:

Not a big fan of spiders. I got a leave me alone, I leave you alone pact with them.
 

Texashiker

Lifer
Dec 18, 2010
18,811
198
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Someone stomp on it just to make sure its dead.

6 foot leg span? Holy crap, it probably ate dogs, cats, and people.
 

waggy

No Lifer
Dec 14, 2000
68,143
10
81
I think a 6 inch one would wake many of us up.

no no its bigger then you think. Each leg is 6 inch's..so the span would be larger then a foot... i would guess the body the size of a basketball?

i may be wrong though..
 

DesiPower

Lifer
Nov 22, 2008
15,299
740
126
Lets resuscitate or clone the mother ah heck then we can have a "Tarantula" (movie) kind of scenario in our hands!! it will be fun with all the latest guns and sh1t we have!!!
 

HumblePie

Lifer
Oct 30, 2000
14,665
440
126
The longest leg would be about 6 inches on this spider. The body would probably be 3 to 4 inches around the largest part of the thorax. Still a big spider. Basically anyone remember the size of the spiders in Arachnophobia the movie? That's about the size of these spiders. The difference is these are orb spiders which are the big web weavers and not tarantulas like in the movie.
 

LTC8K6

Lifer
Mar 10, 2004
28,520
1,575
126
The longest leg would be about 6 inches on this spider. The body would probably be 3 to 4 inches around the largest part of the thorax. Still a big spider. Basically anyone remember the size of the spiders in Arachnophobia the movie? That's about the size of these spiders. The difference is these are orb spiders which are the big web weavers and not tarantulas like in the movie.

Yes. Really big spiders today are ground spiders.

What would have been terrifying about this fossil spider is that it would have been hanging in a hell of a web. You'd have come around a corner and had that sucker on your face.
 

JTsyo

Lifer
Nov 18, 2007
12,012
1,125
126
Yes. Really big spiders today are ground spiders.

What would have been terrifying about this fossil spider is that it would have been hanging in a hell of a web. You'd have come around a corner and had that sucker on your face.

hey, it had to catch dinosaurs to eat.
 

Homerboy

Lifer
Mar 1, 2000
30,890
5,001
126
6" doesn't seem that big.
IIRC there are bigger spiders roaming in the jungles right now?

Research: Goliath Birdeater - These spiders can have a leg span of up to 12 inch (30 cm) and can weigh over 6 ounces (170 g).
amazonpinktoe-431x300.jpg
 

JTsyo

Lifer
Nov 18, 2007
12,012
1,125
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Boring.

You would expect prehistoric spiders to be bigger than we have now

Past a certain point the weight increase due to size would be disadvantageous. Being small enough to climb on most surfaces and hand from web are strong survival advantages. Not to mention the food intake needed.