INDEX to Spiders of Sungai Tawau


Family Sparassidae
 (Huntsman spiders)
Genus: Heteropoda

Heteropoda tetrica

Female
Location : SUNGAI TAWAU 16-9-2014 SUN 4:24PM

 Heteropoda tetrica Thorell, 1897 – variation and biogeography :  http://www.senckenberg.de/files/content/forschung/abteilung/terrzool/

Heteropoda (Giant huntsman spiders) are distributed in tropical Asia and Australia. These spiders catch and eat insects.

The huntsman spider,
Spiders of the Genus Heteropoda are called huntsman spider, giant crab spider and the banana spider.
Huntsman spiders because these spiders wandering around hunting for insects.
Giant Crab spiders because they can walk side way. And Giant in order not to confuse with the species Crab spiders which are small.
Banana Spiders due to its occasional appearance in marketed bananas, is a cosmotropical species introduced into U.S., from tropical countries like Philippines which exported large quantity of bananas to US.
 

Chelicera (Mouthparts) and Fangs (The sharp teeth )

Chelicera (Mouthparts) and Fangs (The sharp teeth )

Heteropoda spiders are good hunters with powerful mouthparts.

Huntsman spiders do not use webs to capture prey. Their  strong chelicerae (mouthparts) are used to capture the insects to feed.

Poison is injected into the prey from glands extending from the chelicerae into the cephalothorax.

 
Eyes of a female Heteropoda tetrica Eyes of a female Heteropoda tetrica
 

Front view of the eight eyes arrangement of this species of spiders.

 

Species : Heteropoda tetrica (Female)
SUNGAI TAWAU 16-9-2014 SUN 3:51PM
 
Heteropoda tetrica (Female) All spiders have venom but In Borneo I never heard news of serious bite from spiders or causing dead.

So I have no worries when this Heteropoda craw into my palm so long I handle gently not to pressure it by pressing or pinching.

According to records Heteropoda venom is not considered medically significant though bites can be rather painful.

Species : Heteropoda tetrica (Female)

SUNGAI TAWAU 16-9-2014 SUN 4:38PM
Ventral side of the Abdomen Book lungs covered by epigastric plates
Epigynum
Spinnerets

Ventral side of the Abdomen

On the ventral side of the abdomen are two hardened plates covering the book lungs. These are called the epigastric plates.

A fold, known as the epigastric furrow, separates the region of the book lungs and epigyne from the more posterior part of the abdomen. In the middle of this furrow is the opening of the oviduct (in females) and at either end are the lung slits.
Epigynum Epigynum

The epigyne or epigynum is the external genital structure of female spiders. As the epigyne varies greatly in form in different species, even in closely related ones, it often provides the most distinctive characteristic for recognizing species. It consists of a small, hardened portion of the exoskeleton located on the underside of the abdomen, in front of the epigastric furrow and between the epigastric plates.
 

Spiders of Sabah  July 12, 2017 01:38:51 PM

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