Pisaura mirabilis

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Pisaura mirabilis
Female carrying egg sack
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Order:	Araneae
Infraorder:	Araneomorphae
Family:	Pisauridae
Genus:	Pisaura
Species:	P. mirabilis
Binomial name
Pisaura mirabilis (Clerck, 1757)

The nursery web spider Pisaura mirabilis is a spider species of the family Pisauridae.

Striking characteristics of Pisaura mirabilis are its long legs (the fourth pair being the longest) and its slender abdomen (opisthosoma). The male is between 10 and 13 mm, while the female is 12 to 15 mm.^[1] After final ecdysis, the male spiders weigh on average 54 mg and females 68 mg.

The prosoma (cephalothorax) is variable in color, ranging from light to reddish brown and from gray to black. A lighter stripe is visible down the middle of the prosoma. The opisthosoma (abdomen) is long and narrow and tapered towards the rear end.

The female spiders has a dark patch (epigyne) on the underside of her abdomen that includes the copulatory organs. Male genital openings can be found at the same location, but remain inconspicuous.

Patterning and coloration varies due to polymorphism.^[2][3][4] These patterns, which can be caused by hair and pigments, change with the growth of the spider (ontogenesis).^[5]

Male spiders exhibit a stronger contrast than females and appear black, especially when compared to the white nuptial gifts. Females tend to get paler towards the end of summer. The stripe along the back of the body can be found in all spiders and can be seen as crypsis, a protective measure against predators.

The pedipalps in nymphs and females look similar to legs. In males, this structure gets thicker towards the end and is used to store sperm until reproduction (bulbus). The outer chelicerae segment consists of three teeth. They catch their prey during the day and at night and are also active on warm winter days.