Talk:Argiope pulchella
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File:Argiope pulchella at Nayikayam Thattu.jpg to appear as POTD soon
[edit]Hello! This is a note to let the editors of this article know that File:Argiope pulchella at Nayikayam Thattu.jpg will be appearing as picture of the day on March 4, 2020. You can view and edit the POTD blurb at Template:POTD/2020-03-04. If this article needs any attention or maintenance, it would be preferable if that could be done before its appearance on the Main Page so Wikipedia doesn't look bad. :) Thanks! Cwmhiraeth (talk) 13:36, 21 February 2020 (UTC)
Argiope pulchella is a species of orb-weaving spider belonging to the family Araneidae, native to India and south-eastern Asia. This picture, taken in the Indian state of Kerala, shows a female A. pulchella spider in the middle of its web, with a male visible above it on the right. The male is "shuddering", vibrating the web as part of a courtship ritual, with males that shudder at high rates for long periods being preferred by the female to those with lesser skills; such activity may also reduce the likelihood that the male will be cannibalised by the female after mating. A zig-zag stabilimentum, a form of web decoration whose function is not precisely known, can be seen at the bottom right of the photograph.Photograph credit: Jeevan Jose