Cambridgea foliata, commonly known as the New Zealand sheet-web spider, is a species of spider in the family Desidae.Forster, R.R.; Wilton, C.L. (1973). The spiders of New Zealand. Part 4, Agelenidae, Stiphidiidae, Amphinectidae, Amaurobiidae, Neolanidae, Ctenidae, Psechridae. Otago Museum Bulletin, 4. These nocturnal, arboreal spiders are endemic to the North Island of New Zealand and build large horizontal sheet-webs with a large number of knock-down threads.
Taxonomy This species was described as Tengeria foliata by Ludwig Carl Christian Koch.Koch, L. (1872). Die Arachniden Australiens, nach der Natur beschrieben und abgebildet [Erster Theil, Lieferung 3-7]. Bauer & Raspe, Nürnberg, 105-368, pl. 8-28. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.121660 It was moved to the Cambridgea genus in 1898.Simon, E. (1898). Histoire naturelle des araignées. Deuxième édition, tome second. Roret, Paris, pp. 193-380. [second pdf with detailed publication dates of the single parts] doi:10.5962/bhl.title.51973 It was most recently revised in 1973. The holotype location is considered unknown.
Description C. foliata have a reddish-brown cephalothorax and greyish yellow abdomen. While males and females of this species are of a similar size with a cephalothorax width of approximately 5.8mm, males have significantly longer chelicerae compared to females. While males of other Cambridgea species possess a stridulatory organ on the dorsal surface of the pedicel and abdomen, it is absent in male C. foliata.
Distribution This species is only known from the North Island and the north end of the South Island of New Zealand.
Contest behaviour In the summer season, mature males depart their natal webs in search of females, sometimes wandering into people's houses'. When they find a female's web, they will use their first pair of legs and chelicerae to defend the web and female from any other males which may intrude, with the largest males tending to be most successful at defending webs.
Conservation status Under the New Zealand Threat Classification System, this species is listed as "Not Threatened".
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