Maratus vespa, Otto & Hill, 2016

Otto, Jürgen C. & Hill, David E., 2021, Catalogue of the Australian peacock spiders, Peckhamia 148 (4), pp. 1-35 : 24

The vespa group

This group is closely related to the linnaei group and it is also endemic to the southwestern corner of Australia. As do members of that group, vespa group males move their fan from side to side in front of attentive females at a distance of only a few millimeters, framed by their elevated and heavily fringed legs III. However vespa group males have prominent lobate flaps, and the lateral margins of these flaps are ornamented in a manner that attract a female when they are rotated far to the left or right behind the legs III. This remarkable and diverse group was only recently discovered.