ARACHNIDA > ARANEAE > Tetragnathidae > Metellina

As noted on the previous page, this family includes 14 species in four genera; Tetragnatha (6), Pachygnatha (3), Metellina (3) and Meta (2).

This page looks at Metellina with the first two species regarded as being the most frequently observed orbweb spiders in Britain, which makes me wonder why they're not classified with the Araneidae. The web construction might be slightly different, but as far as I can see they've got more in common with that family than Tetragnathidae given that they are not actually long-jawed.

That said, they do have a couple of characteristic features that help distinguish them from Araneids. The first is the oval, tapering shape of the abdomen, and the other is the distinctive 'tuning fork' mark on the carapace.

The species considered here are Metellina mengei and Metellina segmentata, which are more likely to be found in open woodland and grassland vegetation than in the more dark and secluded habitats that Metellina merianae prefers.

All three species vary greatly in terms of general appearance, colour and pattern depth and, from what I've seen, even the so-called distinctive 'tuning fork' marking that in many cases is either non-defined or almost missing. Consequently, identification to species can only be reliably confirmed from detailed examination. However, it is known that mature individuals are most likely to be seen during certain months of the year, with Metellina mengei predominating during April to June and maybe into July, whereas Metellina segmentata is more likely to be encountered later on in August and September, or sometimes later if the weather stays warm. Obviously overlaps can occur, but these trends have resulted in the former being called the Spring Orb-weaver and the latter the Autumn Orb-weaver. Whilst accepting that any identity is only 'likely', I've adopted a policy of using the month photographed to determine the species rather than simply labelling them all as Metellina sp., which I reserve for those photographed between or outside the associated season.

I was pleased to be able to update this page with a couple of photos of Metellina merianae. The first of which is a subadult male where the general proportions, colour and pattern of the carapace, together with dark spots on the femora, provided sufficient detail to enable a positive ID from one of the experts on the British Spider Identification Group. Similarly with the final individual, which was photographed on some very wet deadwood.

Updated, Nov.23 (v.4)