Gasteracantha hasselti C. L. Koch, 1837

Tan, Ji, Chan, Zi Yang, Ong, Ching Ang & Yong, Hoi Sen, 2019, Phylogenetic relationships of Actinacantha Simon, Gasteracantha Sundevall, Macracantha Hasselt and Thelacantha Simon spiny orbweavers (Araneae: Araneidae) in Peninsular Malaysia, Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 67, pp. 32-55 : 45-46

Gasteracantha hasselti C. L. Koch, 1837

( Figs. 1F , 7 A−E)

Gasteracantha hasseltii C. L. Koch, 1837: 29 , fig. 267

Gasteracantha hasseltii Dahl, 1914: 247 . 250

Gasteracantha hasselti Song, Zhu & Chen, 1999: 281 , figs. 168E, F, K, L, Q, R

Gasteracantha hasselti Yin et al., 2012: 581 , figs. 279a−f

Gasteracantha hasselti Sen et al., 2015: 108 , figs. 617−621, pl. 21

Gasteracantha hasselti Williams, 2017: 249 , figs. 1−7

Material examined. MALAYSIA. 1 female (reg. UIR270115- GHAS1 ), Sungai Sedim, Kedah, coll. Tan J and Chan ZY, 27 January 2015 .

Diagnosis. Adult female G. hasselti is differentiated from those of Actinacantha globulata and Macracantha arcuata based on the typically attenuated median spines which hardly exceeds half the width of the abdomen.

Natural history. A female was collected from a web amid the shrubs of a disturbed forest. Female individuals tend to construct webs in dryer areas. Males not observed.

Distribution. India, China, Indochina, Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia.

Tan et al.: Phylogeny of spiny spiders in P. Malaysia

Figures

Fig. 1. General habitus. A, Actinacantha globulata (Walckenaer, 1841), sub-female; B, Gasteracantha diardi (Lucas, 1835), female; C, G. diardi yellow morph, female; D, G. diardi white morph, sub-female; E, G. kuhli, female; F, Gasteracantha hasselti C. L. Koch, 1837, female; G, Macracantha arcuata (Fabricius, 1793), female; H, Thelacantha brevispina (Doleschall, 1857), female; I, G. mengei Keyserling, 1864, female. Photos by Tan Ji.

Fig. 7. Epigynal structure of Gasteracantha hasselti C. L. Koch, 1837. A, Ventral view; B, Posterior view; C, Lateral view; D, Dorsal view; E, Anterior view. Scale = 100 µm. CO = Copulatory opening; FD = Fertilisation duct; S = Spermatheca.