Template:POTD/2023-01-16

Picture of the day
Macracantha
Macracantha is a genus of orb-weaver spider containing a single species, M. arcuata. It is found in India and China and through Southeast Asia to Borneo. The females of this genus have tough, shell-like abdomens armed with three pairs of spines. The middle spines project upward and outward, curving in toward each other along their length, and have a length of 20 to 26 millimetres (0.79 to 1.02 in), whereas the abdominal width is only 8 to 9 millimetres (0.31 to 0.35 in). The female's front and rear spines are short and roughly equal in length. The male of the species measures only 1.5 millimetres (0.059 in), with stout, conical spines. This photograph shows a M. arcuata spider in Kaeng Krachan National Park, Thailand.Photograph credit: Rushen