Araneus diadematus dorsal abdomen, with four or more segments forming a cross. The markings are formed in cells filled with guanine, which is a byproduct of protein metabolism. Adult females range in length from , while males range from . Occasionally, the female will eat the male directly after mating. (See video below.) The legs of orb-weaver spiders are specialized for spinning orb webs. The webs are built by the larger females who hang head down in the center of the web or remain hidden in nearby foliage, with one claw hooked to a signal line connected to the main orb waiting
Araneus Theridiosomatidae ("Theridiosoma gemmosum", described by L. Koch, 1877 as "Theridion gemmosum"), Titanoecidae ("Nurscia albomaculata", described by Lucas, 1846 as "Epeira albo-maculata") and Uloboridae ("Uloborus glomosus", described by Walckenaer, 1842 as "Epeira glomosus"). "Epeira cylindrica" was at a time placed in Linyphiidae and is considered "incertae sedis", as is ""Araneus" cylindriformis" . "Epeira" was synonymized with the genus "Aranea" by Leach, 1815, and with "Araneus" by Simon, 1904. Throughout the 19th century, "Epeira" was used as a catch-all genus, similar to the once ubiquitous salticid genus "Attus". However, from 1911, to its last mention in 1957, only very few authors continued