Spiders

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Photos from various angles are sometimes necessary for specific ID.

front (eye arrangement, pedipalp colour)
dorsal (above - general colouration, carapace and abdomen patterns)
ventral (underneath - especially useful for some of the ground-dwelling families and orb-weaving families)
side (further details for general shape, abdomen patterns and eye configuration)
back (further details for abdomen pattern).

Comments or photos on the following also provides valuable information if/when such features are applicable and observed...

surroundings and location (eg. ground, leaf litter, hand rail, tree trunk)
web structure and silk use (eg. orb, messy & tangled, throwing silk)
breeding (eg. display, egg sac)
behaviour (eg. hunting, interaction, familiarity with people such as the threatening display of a huntsman or the friendly and curious jumping spiders that jump onto the camera lens)
notable, unique, exciting or strange observations (eg. spur-like protrusions from legs, camouflage, mimicry)

Please note that the size of the spider is measured by body length.

body size is from the top of the cephalothorax (head) to the tip of the abdomen without including the legs.

(Updated: October, 2022. Please feel free to message a spider moderator if you have any queries or suggestions for improvement)

Resources:

Field guide: A Field Guide to Spiders of Australia authored by Robert Whyte & Greg Anderson

A good introduction: http://www.ento.csiro.au/education/allies/araneae.html

All about Australian spiders: http://www.arachne.org.au/01_cms/details.asp?ID=2409

Spiders

Huntsman spiders (Sparassidae)

Jumping or peacock spiders (Salticidae)

Wolf spiders (Lycosidae)

Other hunting spiders

Orb-weaving spiders (several families)

Trapdoor, Funnelweb or Mouse spiders (Mygalomorphae)

Other web-building spiders

Water spiders (Pisauridae)

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Discussion

NateKingsford wrote:

1 hr ago

Whoops, I remember typing in Phonognathidae, not Podargus

Phonognatha graeffei

MichaelBedingfield wrote:

2 hrs ago

Hi Nate, this is not a Tawny Frogmouth as you suggested 😊

Phonognatha graeffei

Curiosity wrote:

4 May 2025

Thanks @MichaelMulvaney. Now that I know it's a weevil, I'll look through my photos of weevils from around our yard and nearby nature strip. I don't often see weevils.

Arkys curtulus

MichaelMulvaney wrote:

3 May 2025

Yep a weevil is the prey

Arkys curtulus

TwoRivers wrote:

3 May 2025

Other sightings and info for this species include:
https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/taxa/551628-Cyclosa-fuliginata
Salsa fuliginata, commonly known as the sooty orbweaver, is a orb-weaver spider in the genus Salsa.

AND
https://biocache.ala.org.au/occurrences/5216c5b0-d833-4d7d-b483-f66b2e16b994

Salsa fuliginata