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Animal profile

Redback Spider

Latrodectus hasselti

ArachnidaDry sheltered sites, including sheds, letterboxes, garden furniture and rubbish piles

Field profile

A widow spider with a red stripe along the upper abdomen, at home in human structures across Australia. Females build an untidy snare with sticky gum-footed lines running to the ground. Males are tiny and short-lived.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2024-07-12

Redback Spider

The male redback somersaults into her fangs

During copulation the male redback flips his abdomen over onto the female's mouthparts and is usually eaten while still transferring sperm. Field and laboratory work suggests the manoeuvre buys him longer copulation and more of the paternity.

Read with evidence →

Redback Spider | Daily Animal Facts