Araneus alsine

Araneus alsine, the strawberry spider or orange wheelweaving spider, is a species of the orb-weaving spider family, Araneidae.

Distribution
This species has a palearctic distribution (Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia, Kazakhstan, Japan).

Habitat
These spiders prefer moist environments. They mainly inhabit forests clearings, swampy bogs with birch and heather, wet meadows, high grass and shady places.

Description
Araneus alsine can reach a body length of 6.5 - 8.5 mm in males, of 12 - 14.9 mm in females. These spiders have a large, almost globular or slightly elliptical shaped opisthosoma, ranging from beige to reddish-orange, with many white-and-yellow spots spread over the surface and sometimes forming the sign of a cross. Sternum, chelicerae and legs are reddish brown. Legs show darker annulations in males. As one of its common names suggests, A. alsine appears somewhat like a strawberry.

Habits
In June and July A. alsine builds small webs (less than 10 or 20 cm high) near the ground and waits near them in dried leaves that it has rolled together, forming an inverted cone. The retreat and web can be found in low vegetation, often near bushes of Vaccinium uliginosum. Mating occurs in June and July, eggs are laid until August. The spiderlings soon hatch, overwinter in a subadult stadium and are full-grown in early summer next year.