Spider with a yellow-black abdomen. The wasp spider is a poisonous insect with a bright appearance.

Many people have heard many different scary stories in which the main character is a yellow and black spider. One person will talk about how he met him in nature and chose to immediately leave his territory. Another will definitely declare that he has rid the world of yet another poisonous creature. And the third, the most risky, will have such a pet in his own home. All these people have one thing in common - they deal with spiders. It is necessary to figure out whether they are dangerous, or are all the stories that the poison is fatal to humans just pure fiction? What kind of life do these arthropods lead and what kind of insects are they?

The name “yellow-black spider” itself is not scientific or correct. There are several found in nature various types that have this color. We will look at the most popular: the tarantula and the argiope, which is also called the “zebra spider”. First, you should pay attention to the most important thing - these representatives are not poisonous. The only exception to this is for those people who have increased allergic reaction for poison Their bite can be fatal. In all other cases, you can get away with a small tumor, which will subside after a few days or a maximum of two weeks of fever.

So, the first yellow-black spider is a tarantula. Please note that this “aspen” coloring is the rarest among arthropods. The same can be said about pets kept at home. The most common shades are black or brown. In addition, what can be said about tarantulas is that they rarely spin webs. As a rule, they make nests for themselves. During this process they will use their web to secure the walls. Moreover, when a spider eats in its nest, it takes the remains of the victim outside the territory of its house, rolling it up with cobweb threads for convenience.

The next yellow and black spider is the Argiope. This is a lover of warm, hot and dry areas. Some call it a "pointer" global warming", because in lately its habitat area has expanded quite a lot. Unlike the tarantula, the argiope weaves a web in order for potential food to fall into it. However, the zebra hunts universally. If during the day no one gets caught in the web, then the spider will quite calmly go on a regular hunt at nightfall. As for the web itself, it is a weaving of a rather complex structure. Moreover, Argiope does not try to hide it at all; a person will always notice the nets.

It's worth going back and looking at animal venom in more detail. Any yellow-black striped spider has quite poisonous glands, which they constantly use to neutralize the victim and make it edible. As a rule, the poison acts in such a way that all the insides of the prey turn into a homogeneous liquid mass, which the insects subsequently suck out.

Recently, the black spider with yellow stripes has become of great interest to lovers of exotic animals. Despite the fact that they have become apartment dwellers for quite some time now, you should not have such pets if you are not at all familiar with the conditions of their detention. Moreover, you may be the very person who suffers from an increased allergic reaction to a bite.

The wasp spider belongs to the family of orb-weaving spiders. Its web is quite remarkable - the pattern consists of zigzag broken lines. Such a fishing net can, as a rule, be found in well-lit areas among bushes and herbaceous plants. This type most common in central and southern Europe.

Spider wasp - an insect with a yellow-black abdomen

Description

The wasp spider, or argiope bruennichi, is a fairly large insect. Representatives of this species have pronounced sexual dimorphism: females are significantly larger than males. Adult females have an average body size of 3 cm, but larger insects are sometimes found. Males are much smaller - their body length, as a rule, does not exceed 0.5 cm.

The presented photos clearly show that the wasp spider has a rather bright color on its abdomen - it is covered with alternating yellow and black stripes. There are six notches along the edges of the abdomen - in this area you can see a range of colors from orange to darker, almost brown. The head is black. There are short hairs on the cephalothorax ash-colored. The legs are long, black, girded with a pattern in the form of pale yellow rings.

Note! This color is unique to females. Males are much less expressive - their body is usually black or gray!

There are about 150 species of spiders from the genus Argiope.

Lifestyle

Representatives of this species prefer to live in small groups of 20 individuals each. They live in fields and meadows, in forest areas, as well as in other places with dense vegetation. At the same time, they choose open areas that are well translucent and warmed by the sun's rays.

To build a web, these insects choose a large spreading plant or build it between several bushes. To make one catcher net it takes the spider about an hour, and the construction process itself always occurs at dusk. Central part The web consists of a stabilimentum - a pair of clearly visible threads located opposite each other, which diverge from the middle.

This is interesting! The web of argiope bruennichi has the ability to reflect ultraviolet rays and this is quite good at attracting insects!

The finished fishing net is very beautiful - it has small cells arranged in a zigzag pattern. And at its center there is always a wasp-like spider. The mistress sits on the underside of the web, spreading her long legs wide apart, and patiently waits for the next victim to fall into the trap.

When a female wasp spider sits in her web, the legs of the first, second, as well as the third and fourth pairs are brought together in such a way that the insect visually resembles the letter “X”

Nutrition

The basis of the wasp spider's diet consists of insects, both orthoptera and others. Most often, the following networks fall into the placed networks:

• grasshoppers;
• flies;
• mosquitoes;
• butterflies;
• fillies;

The victim caught in the web begins to twitch, which attracts a hunter located nearby. The spider immediately approaches, plunges its jaws into the body of the prey and paralyzes the caught insect with poison. As soon as the prey freezes, the hunter deftly wraps it in a web, bites off the restraining threads and hides it in a secluded place.

After some time, the poison, which contains digestive enzymes, softens the victim’s body, after which the spider begins to eat.

The wasp spider sucks out all the nutrients under the chitinous cover from the captured insect.

Reproduction

The female becomes sexually mature immediately after molting. She sheds her old chitinous cover and allows the male to fertilize her, after which she eats him.

Note! Scientists still cannot come to a consensus as to why she does this. Some believe that in this way she is trying to saturate her body with protein, which is necessary for normal gestation of eggs. Others believe that a natural reflex is triggered - the female eats the male due to incompatibility in size, that is, it acts on the principle of natural selection, when large individuals destroy small ones!

A female spider with a color like a wasp lays eggs about a month after mating. She weaves several cocoons from the web and places approximately 400 eggs in each. She hangs all the cocoons near her fishing net and soon dies.

Externally, the cocoon of the wasp spider resembles a tiny jug

Future offspring spend the entire winter in a dense, warm cocoon. With the arrival of warmth, the young emerge from the eggs and spend some time in close proximity to the cocoon. During this period, many spiderlings die and there is only one reason for this - overpopulation of the territory, due to which there is not enough food for everyone. Thus, some packs die due to hunger, others are eaten by their own brothers.

The survivors leave their homes around August. In windy weather, they scatter around the surrounding area using their web. In the fall, the young reach sexual maturity.

Danger

The venom of the wasp spider is deadly to insects, but practically harmless to humans. At the same time, argiope bruennichi does not purposefully attack people. This insect can only bite accidentally if it is disturbed by picking it up. The affected area may experience:

• slight swelling;
• redness;
• burning;
• pain.

But these symptoms often go away very quickly. If after a wasp spider bite you begin to experience discomfort, then apply something cold to the affected area to speed up healing. After such a compress, the pain subsides and the swelling goes away.

In general, the venom of the wasp spider is quite weak for humans. However, sometimes, in particular with weak immunity, the body’s negative reaction can be quite intense. In such cases, anti-inflammatory ointments usually help. The poison of argiope bruennichi can be dangerous for humans only if there is an allergy to insect bites. In this situation, you should definitely seek qualified medical help.

Class: Arachnida / Arachnida.

Order: Spiders / Araneae.

Suborder: Opisthophelian spiders /

Superfamily: Araneomorph spiders /

Araneomorphae (Labidognatha)

Superfamily: Lampshade spiders /

(Hypochiloidea) / Hypochiloidea.

Family: Orb-weaving spiders /

Genus: Argiopes / - Argiope.

View: Argiope bruennichi / Wasp spider.

Argiope (Argiope bruennichi) or wasp spider. You can recognize it immediately by its peculiar yellow-white-black striped coloring, which is designed to scare off enemies and for which it received its second name - wasp. The female has an abdomen with a black and yellow pattern, the cephalothorax is covered with silvery hairs, the legs are light brown with black rings; males: inconspicuous and tiny. There are about 150 species of such spiders in the world, but only one is found in Europe. Its fine-mesh web is unusual, consisting of zigzag stripes running up and down. The spider spreads its web between several plants at a height of about 30 cm from the ground, positioning itself head down in the middle and lying in wait for prey. The wasp spider suspends its web between plants, usually weaving into it two stabilizations in the form of wide, zigzag ribbons. The spider always sits in the center of the web, braided with whitish threads. Catches grasshoppers, wasps. The prey caught in the net is quickly wrapped in threads, paralyzed by the bite, and then eaten.
POISONOUS FAUNA OF KUBAN. SCORPIO GARDENS.

“Everything is poison and everything is medicine, and only measure distinguishes one from the other.”(Paracelsus).

Long ago, in Babylon, the king erected the famous “Hanging Gardens” for his beloved wife Semiramis. But so that an unexpected guest would not wander into this one of the seven wonders of the world, it was ordered to guard the entrance to a terrible monster - Scorpio...
We talked about the poisonous fauna of our region with one of the leaders of the Krasnodar exotarium, which is on Krasnaya, 88, Andrey CHUSHKIN.
1. SEA MONSTERS.
For those who are in a hurry to sunbathe by the sea waves in the Kuban resorts in the summer, it is not without interest to know about the dangers lurking in the coastal waters. The poisons of marine animals are interesting because they are not found in land dwellers. First of all, you should beware of the large cornet jellyfish with a purple flower pattern on its back. Its stinging “cells are fringed and cause severe skin burns” (in animals, its poison causes respiratory paralysis and death). You need to take special care of your eyes. The scorpionfish is beautiful and quirky (it has skin growths on its head), but you should not pick it up. A prick from the dorsal fin or gill covers can cause severe inflammation of the lymph nodes. In shallow water you can also meet stingrays. The structure of its venom gland under a large, up to 30 cm, jagged spine is poorly understood. The stingray never attacks on its own, but a provoked blow with a spike can pierce clothing and even shoes. The result is loss of consciousness, diarrhea, respiratory distress, and an injection in the chest or stomach is fatal. A large dragon also inflicts painful scratches. Scorpionfish and dragonets are quite edible. But the Sphynx dog does not bite or stab - but it has toxic insides. In the Krinitsa area you can meet a katran, but hardly anyone will dare to pick it up, since this fish is a type of shark.
2. TOAD'S MILK.
You shouldn’t believe Russian fairy tales and expect that after a kiss every toad will turn into a princess. Moreover, the seemingly harmless toad conceals a potent poison in its skin. The largest glands - parotids - are located behind the "ears". In case of danger, they are capable of secreting a viscous liquid resembling milk. The venom of the common toad, if it enters the stomach, can kill a dog. No human death was recorded (probably because no one licked the toad on purpose). Many are afraid that by stroking this creature, warts may appear on the skin. In fact, the wart virus is found in the soil, and toad venom can theoretically only soften the skin and make it easier for infection to enter there. The gray Caucasian toad lives in the Kuban, reaching a size of 20 cm. The not so poisonous green toad will be smaller. Toads are very advanced amphibians in evolution. In captivity they live up to 36 years (longer than cats!), and in captivity they can even eat meat. Scientists are very interested in toad venom because it has a number of medicinal properties(stimulation of respiratory movements, anthelmintic, antishock, radioprotective and antitumor effects). There are also yellow- and red-bellied toads in our region. In a limited space, they are capable of poisoning each other with their own poison, which is released in the form of white foam. When in danger, fire-bellied toads like to show off their colorful bellies: they roll over onto their backs and put their paws behind their heads. Not every predator will even risk sniffing them. More rare species- spade toads. The effect of their poison, which smells like garlic, has not been fully studied.
3. DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING?
Probably, more often a person still suffers from insect bites. The fear of insects has spilled over onto the modern movie screen (well, who hasn’t seen the horror films “Aliens”, “The Fly”, etc.?). Modernists - Kafka, Ronsard, Dali, Mandelstam, Nabokov - had a keen interest in the world of insects... According to many myths, insects appeared from the body of a monster defeated by God (the demon Beelzebub was called the “Lord of the Flies”). Near Sochi there lives a very small (up to 5 cm in length) scorpion of a reddish-brown or dark red color. Its bite is not particularly dangerous (it’s the same as being stung by a wasp). There is conflicting information about the fact that larger and more poisonous Caucasian scorpions wander into our region. Unlike a spider, which bites with its mouth, scorpions sting in a completely different place. At the end of the tail there is a poisonous gland with a sting. In captivity, scorpions can go hungry for up to a year and a half, and in extreme cases, they can eat each other. The most poisonous thick-tailed scorpion in the CIS lives in Azerbaijan. Scorpion venom causes symptoms similar to epilepsy and pancreatitis. In fauna former USSR the most poisonous spiders- karakurt and tarantula. They are not found in the Kuban, although there are people who allegedly saw spiders similar to them on the coast. It is reliably known that the largest wolf spider (steatoda), a distant relative of the karakurt, runs around the Black Sea region, up to 3-4 cm in paw span. The bite of a steatoda is not fatal to humans, but is very painful (the poison has a neurotropic effect). Steatodes do not have permanent housing; they spin the cocoon wherever they can - under stones and snags. That's why lonely wanderers were called "wolves." Caring females carry the baby on themselves (well, why not a horse!). It is not entirely clear whether the South Russian tarantula, a rather large spider up to 35 mm, thickly covered with hairs, wanders into Kuban. The venom of this spider causes pain that does not subside for several days (unlike the karakurt venom, the pain does not spread to the entire body). But the cross spider is widespread in our country, weaving a wheel-shaped web. You've probably met him more than once in your garden and dacha. There will be a burning sensation at the site of the bite, sometimes a headache, joint pain, and colic. Fatalities are not reliably known. One of the most beautiful spiders Kuban - argiope. Its abdomen is silvery-white, and along the edges there are six deep grooves, colored with streaks ranging from brown to orange. The legs are yellow with black stripes. It also bites very painfully, injecting a poison of a very complex structure, which is being actively studied by biologists. Each spider is poisonous to varying degrees. But, oddly enough, the most toxic is the haymaker spider (you've probably encountered one at home). This little thing has a poison stronger than that of the karakurt. But the jaws - chelicerae - are only capable of biting through a skinny fly. Of the centipedes (they have poisonous jaws), the ringed scolopendra is the most dangerous to humans. She crawls under almost every rock on the coast. The length of the centipede is 10-15 cm. Its toxin resembles the venom of the steppe viper - the pain does not subside for four days, the lymph nodes swell, and the composition of the blood changes. And woe to everyone if you also drank vodka before taking a bite. Centipedes that live in our forests (for example, the white noose) are capable of scaring away observers by emitting a strong stench.
4. LIVED IN THE WORLD A "GOOD BEETLE".
Be careful with bugs too. The more beautiful and brighter it is, the more poisonous it may be. Their “bug blood” (lymph) is poisonous. The ladybug, the Colorado potato beetle, and the turtle bug have the same effect as “blood-spraying”. IN best case scenario When you touch such miracle bugs, you may lose your sense of smell from the pungent smell. At worst... meet the blister first. This is a beetle with an elongated body, the elytra are red with black spots, and the abdomen is black and shaggy. It leaves marks on the human body that develop into blisters and abscesses. Wounds and scratches (especially in children) aggravate poisoning - kidney disease and bladder . Once inside, the venomous poison (contaridin) can lead to death. In the old days, kings were poisoned with these toxins, who died in terrible agony (the insides of a person were corroded like acid). In medicine, blister plasters were prepared from these beetles. Spanish flies are similar in toxicity (they are only called flies, but in fact they are beetles, shaped like blisters, but the color is metallic green). Magicians and sorcerers prepared elixirs from them that gave direction to erotic dreams. The sting of a bee has an unusually complex structure. It is nourished by two glands - acidic and alkaline (just like a battery!). When stung, the bee secretes another secret that attracts its relatives. Massive bee stings sometimes lead to the death of the victim. Their poison is also terrible because it causes (in about two percent of people) allergies. A bite can provoke a strong smell of perfume or alcohol (death can also occur when stung in the larynx area). When biting, the bee sharply bends its abdomen, and the sting, consisting of two bristles with tiny serrations, rotates and pierces the body. The sting remains under the skin of the mammal and continues to “work” there for some time. But the insect itself dies. Thus, at the cost of their lives, the bees greatly increased the effect of their sting. Predatory wasps have a sting without serrations and it is reusable. Bumblebees are more peaceful and their single bites are less painful, not to mention the sting of a bee wolf (philanthus). It is much worse if you are interested in a large hornet (paper wasp scolius): giant swelling can cause shock in a person. As beautiful as the black and purple carpenter bee is, its sting is also dangerous (here, without any allergies, it will destroy everything). It is interesting that the sting of ichneumon insects is multifunctional - it is both a deadly weapon for other insects and a reproductive (oviparous) organ. In caterpillars, every hair on their soft body is filled with poison. It breaks down easily and, when it gets on the skin (in the eyes, in the respiratory tract) of people, it causes dermatitis and conjunctivitis. One day I met a small green caterpillar at the dacha with black dots on its sides. It was smart enough to touch her with a dry branch - instantly from the fold on her head she released a flexible, mustache-shaped orange fork. She felt the space with it and hid it. And for a long time the acrid ammonia-anise smell was felt in the air. (As they explained to me, most likely it was a caterpillar of a swallowtail butterfly). The hawkmoth caterpillar is armed with a spike at the end of its tail - a primitive wounding device. The hawk moth itself (often hovering over a flower and quickly flapping its propeller wings in a non-butterfly manner) is not poisonous. Although people call him a bumblebee and a terrible insect, piercing with his long proboscis, like an awl, everyone who gets in his way. Moreover, hawk moths are confused (especially by visitors) with... hummingbirds. But there are also poisonous butterflies - the goldentail of a snow-white color and the very beautiful kaya bear with a changeable pattern. Their hairs cause irritation to the skin and eyes.
- Are there poisonous birds? - I ask A.E. Chushkin.
“Definitely not in Kuban,” he laughs. - In the jungle, I heard that there is one somewhere, but its toxicity is probably secondary... In general, aggressively toxic birds are from the field of cryptozoology.
Well, somehow we need to tell readers about the wonder animals and fables of the Kuban land. But next time we will talk about the poisonous flora of our region.
Ivan KARASEV. Source newspaper "Kuban News"