Gasteracanthus sanguinolenta (a kite spider)

Life > Eukaryotes > Opisthokonta > Metazoa (animals) > Bilateria > Ecdysozoa > Panarthropoda > Tritocerebra > Arthropoda > Arachnomorpha > Cheliceriformes > Chelicerata > Euchelicerata > Arachnida > Araneae > Araneomorpha > Family: Araneidae > Genus: Gasteracanthus

Gasteracanthus sanguinolenta, is a diurnal species that occupies the higher zones amongst trees, a metre, and higher, above the ground. The abdomen is wider than long, coloured red, yellow and black and porcelain-like with six projections on the abdomen - two laterally and two posteriorly. Ventrally Gasteracanthus sanguinolenta is black with red spots. The legs are short and black. This is typically a tropical and sub-tropical species but its range extends along the south coast as far as Cape Town.

Text by Norman Larsen ©.