Peacock Spider Display — Eastern Australia
The peacock spider (Maratus volans and 90+ related species) courtship display — the male's iridescent abdominal flap raised and fanned as he dances toward the female, his third pair of legs raised above his body in a pose of extraordinary showiness for an animal 5 millimetres in length — is observable in the heathland and eucalyptus woodland of southeastern Australia from September through November. The peacock spider's combination of its complete improbability (the most visually complex display of any spider, the flap's optical nanostructures producing structural colour that has no pigment equivalent) and its observable behaviour (the male's complex dance sequence in front of the female, which may accept or cannibalise him) creates one of the world's most extraordinary small-scale wildlife encounters. The Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park north of Sydney and the Grampians in Victoria produce the most reliable sightings, the spider's presence detectable by searching dry heathland on warm September mornings.
About this spectacle
Crouching in dry heathland on a warm September morning, you search among low scrub and leaf litter for a spider no larger than a pencil eraser. When you find a male Maratus, the display begins: he raises his brilliantly patterned abdominal flap — a disc of iridescent blues, reds, and oranges produced by optical nanostructures rather than pigment — and fans it wide while lifting his striped third legs above his body like semaphore flags. He then dances, side to side, vibrating, advancing toward the female in a sequence of extraordinary precision. The female may accept him or eat him. At this scale, a macro lens reveals a visual world of impossible complexity: the flap's colours shift with angle, and the spider's multiple eyes track you as intently as you track him. Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park north of Sydney and the Grampians in Victoria offer the most reliable heathland habitat. The experience rewards patience and sharp eyes; the encounter, when it happens, is genuinely astonishing.
When to go
Sep — Nov
Getting there
Nearest airport: SYD. Nearest city: Sydney.
Booking options
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