Macracantha


Macracantha is a genus of Asian orb-weaver spiders currently recognized as containing a single species, Macracantha arcuata. The taxon was first described by Eugène Simon in 1864 as a subgenus of Gasteracantha and was raised to genus status in 1974 by Michel Emerit. Macracantha is notable for the extremely long, curved spines on the abdomens of female members of the genus; Simon created the taxon name from the Greek words μακρός and ἄκανθα. It occurs from India and China through Southeast Asia to Borneo, where an undescribed taxon has been photographed by several 21st-century observers.

Species

The genus contains the following species:
On Borneo, where M. arcuata occurs, multiple observers have also photographed a colorful and dramatically shaped taxon that differs from typical M. arcuata in several respects:
The status of this taxon is unresolved.

Systematics

A 2019 study examining three mitochondrial and two nuclear genes found that M. arcuata is allied with Gasteracantha hasselti and Actinacantha globulata and that Gasteracantha is paraphyletic with respect to Macracantha, Actinacantha, and Thelacantha. The authors, however, did not propose generic reassignments based on their data.