Tetragnatha extensa

T. extensa has an elongated, cream-coloured body. Males are smaller than females, at around body length, compared to for females. The four pairs of legs are very long, The carapace, which is around 1.8–2.6 mm long and 1.1–1.7 mm wide, is orange or dark yellow. The colouring of T. extensa is quite variable, ranging from creamy-yellow to green. On the underside, there is a thick black central band, with a silvery band on either side. T. extensa is distinguished from other members of the genus Tetragnatha by the minute curved tip of the male's conductor (part of the pedipalp), and the form of the female's spermatheca. == Distribution ==

T. extensa has a wide distribution across the Northern Hemisphere (Holarctic). In North America, it is found from Alaska to Newfoundland, and its range extends south to Washington, Colorado and Pennsylvania. and one of the commonest spiders. It is also found in Madeira. ==Ecology and behaviour==

Tetragnatha extensa is found on low-growing vegetation, usually in damp areas. ==Life cycle==

Adults are seen between May and September in the United Kingdom, and between May and July in Alaska. There is little courtship, and the male and female lock jaws, possibly to prevent the female from eating the male before mating. The egg sacs are globular and covered with grey tufted silk, resembling a bird dropping, and are pressed against a plant stem. Overwintering occurs in the form of early-instar spiderlings. ==Taxonomic history==

Tetragnatha extensa was first given a binomial by Carl Linnaeus in his Systema Naturae of 1758, the starting point of zoological nomenclature. In that work, it was included in the genus Aranea (now Araneus). T. extensa is a very common, widespread and variable species, and a number of synonyms have been published: • Aranea extensa Linnaeus, 1758 • Aranea solandri Scopoli, 1763 • Aranea mouffeti Scopoli, 1763 • Tetragnatha rubra Risso, 1826 • Tetragnatha gibba C. L. Koch, 1837 • Tetragnatha chrysochlora Walckenaer, 1841 • Tetragnatha arundinis Bremi-Wolff, 1849 • Tetragnatha fluviatilis Keyserling, 1865 • Tetragnatha nowickii L. Koch, 1870 • Tetragnatha groenlandica Thorell, 1872 • Tetragnatha solandri (Scopoli, 1763) • Tetragnatha manitoba Chamberlin & Ivie, 1942 • Tetragnatha rusticana Chickering, 1959 • Tetragnatha potanini Schenkel, 1963 • Tetragnatha maderiana Wunderlich, 1987 ==References==