Groot gezamenlijk web van Ostearius melanopygius (Linyphiidae)

An large communal web of at least about 50 m2 with thousands of spiders was observed on piles of litter and garden waste on an abandoned parking lot in a forest near Wageningen (province of Gelderland). The spiders belonged almost exclusively to the exotic and invasive Ostearius melanopygius, but thirteen other spider species could be collected as well from a single top of the web. Prey items emerged very abundantly from the organic waste, explaining the high spider density at this site. The communal web consisted of non-sticky threads and was triggered by the onset of the ballooning period, and was observed from the beginning of august till the beginning of November 2019.