6 very similar spiders for ID

[Lester]

6 very similar spiders, two of which I now think I may have miss-IDed.

All on reeds, either browny-gold or greeny yellow in colour.

Thinking now these are all either Tetragnatha montana or T. extensa or a mixture. Hope the bulk ID check is OK.

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[Geoff F]

From what I understand about this family, which is very little. T. extensa and T. pinicola have a small but distinctive paler area in the midline of the sternum, which isn't shown in any of those photos.

Apart from that I think any attempt at identification is a bit of a guess. T. extensa may be a bit paler on top of the abdomen than T. montana, while T. nigrita is quite dark including the carapace. But they are all quite variable in colouration.

T. pinicola is similar to T. extensa but smaller (if you can be sure it is an adult).

The other 4 are rather uncommon and some tend to live more in woodland areas.

But, without proper microscopic examination any attempt at identification is mostly just a lottery. So I think you will have to settle for the standard opt out of Tetragantha sp.

[Lester]

Thanks for the analysis and help Geoff.