Argiope aetherea

{{Short description|Species of spider}}

{{Speciesbox

|image = Argiope aetherea dorsal 1134.jpg

|taxon = Argiope aetherea

|authority = (Walckenaer, 1841)

|synonyms =

{{Specieslist

|Epeira aetherea|Walckenaer, 1841

|Argiope regalis|L. Koch, 1871

|Argiope variabilis|Bradley, 1876

|Argiope lunata|Bradley, 1876

|Argiope brownii|O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1877

|Argiope verecunda|Thorell, 1878

|Argiope aetherea|(Walckenaer, 1841)

|Argiope friedericii|Strand, 1911

|Argiope wolfi|Strand, 1911

|Argiope maerens|Kulczyński, 1911

|Argiope udjirica|Strand, 1911

|Argiope wogeonicola|Strand, 1913

|Gea rotunda|Hogg, 1915

|Argiope novae-pommeraniae|Strand, 1915

}}

|synonyms_ref =

}}

Argiope aetherea is a common, large orb-web spider (family Araneidae). Like other species of Argiope, it is commonly known as the St Andrew's Cross spider, due to the characteristic cross-shaped web decorations female spiders often include in their webs. A. aetherea is similar in appearance to A. keyserlingi, however female A. aetherea are generally larger than A. keyserlingi.{{cite web |url= http://www.arachne.org.au/_dbase_upl/the_orbweavers_argiope_levi.pdf|title= The Orb-Weaver Genera Argiope, Gea, and Neogea from the Western Pacific Region (Araneae: Araneidae, Argiopinae)|author=Levi H. W.|date=1983|website= MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY|publisher=Harvard University |access-date=2017-11-26}} Like most orb-web spiders, A. aetherea shows considerable sexual size dimorphism, with females being many times larger than males.