Metepeira  incrassata

           Metepeira incrassata F.O. Pickard-Cambridge occurs in the East-Central mountains above the Gulf of Mexico, in Fortin de las Flores, Veracruz.  Here the habitat is primarily moist tropical (second growth) forest vegetation with banana and coffee plantations,  high rainfall (170 to 220 cm/ yr), high humidity (68 to 99%), and a moderate daily temperature range (20 - 32 C).  These spiders live in dense groups ranging in size from fewer than ten individuals to several thousand individuals, spanning large spaces between trees along the forest edge in coffee and banana plantations, and in power lines along roadsides (Uetz and Hodge 1990).  The largest recorded colony was estimated at approximately 165,000 spiders.

           M. incrassata occur year-round in this habitat with abundant prey, and exhibit higher degrees of tolerance than other Metepeira species.  Reproduction is continuous, generations overlap, and although there is no parental care, the young usually emerge from egg-sacs and stay within the colony. While agonistic encounters are frequent, they are usually resolved with minimal levels of aggression (Uetz and Hodge 1990; Hodge and Uetz 1995).

M. incrassata colony

M. incrassata habitat