Ornamental Tree-Trunk Spider: Spotting Herennia multipuncta in Singapore

Female and male ornamental tree-trunk spider (Herennia multipuncta) camouflaged on a tree trunk, Old Upper Thomson Road, Singapore

Some spiders you find. This one you have to look for.

On a day walk along Old Upper Thomson Road in Singapore, I found a couple (pun-intended) of Herennia multipuncta, the ornamental tree-trunk spider. By day she is almost invisible, pressed flat against bark in the same mottled grey-brown. At night, her vertical web gives her away.

How to spot her

• Look at tree trunks, not branches. Her web is built flat against the bark, and she waits just behind it.
• Use a torch at a low angle. Sweeping light across the trunk makes the web strands catch the light.
• Go after dark. Webs are far easier to see at night, and so is she, once you know the pattern. 

Big female, tiny male

This species is a textbook case of sexual dimorphism. The female is much larger than the male, and the two look quite different. The male is tiny. 

Quick facts

• Scientific name: Herennia multipuncta
• Family: Nephilidae 
• Where I found her: Old Upper Thomson Road, Singapore
• Danger to people: not aggressive, and a bite isn’t a concern

Photographing her

Shot on a Sony Alpha ILCE-6600 with Sony 90mm macro at f11. Keep your distance, and don’t touch the web or the bark around it. She’ll hold still for photos if you don’t disturb her.

Photo: Lorenzo Zanirato. Follow my wildlife photos on Instagram →