Araneidae – Nephila pilipes – Giant Golden Orb-weaver

Class Arachnida; Order Araneae; Infraorder Araneomorphae; Family Araneidae (Orb-weavers); Scientific name: Nephila pilipes; Common name: Giant Golden Orb Weaver; Alternative common name: Giant Golden Orb-weaving Spider – Female, ventral view - Distribution in Australia: Near coastal areas of northern, eastern and south-western Australia – Distribution outside Australia: throughout Papua New Guinea, islands of the western Pacific and some of the Lesser Sunda Islands of Indonesia - Photographed: in June in Iron Range NP on Cape York Peninsula, Queensland.