following species in the genus Nephila: Nephila comorana Strand, 1916 – Comoros, Mayotte Nephila constricta Karsch, 1879 – Tropical Africa Nephila cornuta (Pallas, 1772) – Guyana Nephila dirangensis Biswas & Biswas, 2006 – India Nephila kuhli (Doleschall, 1859) – Myanmar to Indonesia Nephila laurinae Thorell, 1881 – Malaysia to Solomon Is. Nephila pakistaniensis Ghafoor & Beg, 2002 – Pakistan Nephila pilipes (Fabricius, 1793) (type) – India to China, Vietnam, Philippines, Taiwan, Australia Nephila tetragnathoides (Walckenaer, 1841) – Fiji, Tonga, Niue Nephila vitiana (Walckenaer, 1847) – Indonesia, Fiji, Tonga Additional fossil species are known from the Cenozoic. In 2012 Geratonephila burmanica was described from the Cenomanian aged Burmese amber, Wunderlich 2015 synonymised Geratonephilia with Nephilia tenuis, a species from the Dominican Amber, as he considered it unlikely that the amber was actually Burmese in origin. Though largely ambiguous, the origins of Nephila are undoubtedly Gondowanan. With the prime candidates being Africa, Indomalaya, and Australasia. Distribution and habitat Golden silk orb-weavers are widespread in warmer regions throughout the world, with species in Australia, Asia, Africa (including Madagascar), and the Americas. Spiderlings can be carried by the wind over long distances, and each year, a small number of female golden orb web spiders are found in New Zealand (where they are not endemic) after having been blown across the Tasman Sea; the spiders usually end up in the North Island. Whilst the geographic distribution of Nephila is large, many habitat similarities are seen between these locations. A warm and reasonably wet climate is generally preferred, as these are some of the environmental cues that induce spiderling hatching. Locally, spiders look for relatively dense vegetation where webs can be set up in areas that insects will regularly fly through. Urban environments are also attractive due to the large prey concentrations and lower levels of predation. Behavior Web spinning and structure Nephila spiders produce large asymmetric orb webs up to in diameter. Nephila species remain in their webs permanently, so have a higher predation risk. The golden silk orb-weaver is named for the yellow color of the spider silk used to construct these webs. Yellow threads of their web shine like gold in sunlight. Carotenoids are the main contributors to this yellow color, but xanthurenic acid, two quinones, and an unknown compound may also aid in the color. Experimental evidence suggests that the silk's color may serve a dual purpose: sunlit webs ensnare bees that