New data on the huntsman spiders (Araneae, Sparassidae) of China

 

New data on the huntsman spiders (Araneae, Sparassidae) of China

Abstract

Background

Sparassidae Bertkau, 1872 is the tenth largest family of Araneae, with 11 genera and 288 species known in China.

New information

In the current paper, four newly-recorded species from China are provided: Heteropoda acris Korai & Jäger, 2024, Olios sericeus (Kroneberg, 1875), O. suung Jäger, 2012 and Rhitymna plana Jäger, 2003, of which O. sericeus is re-described, based on specimens collected from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China. Additionally, a new Thelcticopis species, T. lini sp. nov., is described.

Keywords

new species, new records, biodiversity, taxonomy, morphology

Introduction

The spider family Sparassidae Bertkau, 1872 is well-known for its large size and ferocious habits. As the tenth-largest family of Araneae, Sparassidae contains 1529 species belonging to 98 genera worldwide (World Spider Catalog 2025). Currently, 11 genera and 288 species are recorded in China. Most Chinese genera and species are distributed in southern China, except for Eusparassus Simon, 1903 and Micrommata Latreille, 1804 from north-western China (Hu and Fu 1985, Song et al. 1999, Jäger 2008, Sun et al. 2011, Quan and Liu 2012, Zhong and Liu 2014, Ding et al. 2019, Zhong et al. 2019, Zhang et al. 2023, Hu and Liu 2024, Lin 2024, Zhang et al. 2024). During the examination of sparassid specimens collected from China, four species newly recorded in China and one new species belonging to the genus Thelcticopis Karsch, 1884 were identified. The aims of the current paper are to provide photos of the newly-recorded species and to describe a new Thelcticopis species from China.

Hu C, Zhang H, Zhong Y (2025) New data on the huntsman spiders (Araneae, Sparassidae) of China. Biodiversity Data Journal 13: e153724. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.13.e153724