Pandercetes is a genus of huntsman spiders that was first described by Ludwig Carl Christian Koch in his 1875 treatise on Australian spiders. They are mainly distributed in tropical Asia and Australia, and are known for their cryptic coloration that matches local moss and lichen. Their legs have lateral hairs, giving them a feathery appearance, further masking their outline against tree trunks. Their head is somewhat elevated and the carapace has the thoracic region low and flat.
The genus is characterized by the internal anatomy of the reproductive structures. Males have irregular coils at the terminal end, while females have screw like copulatory ducts.
Species
it contains sixteen species and one subspecies, found in tropical forests in Asia, extending east to Australia:
- Pandercetes celatus <small>Pocock, 1899</small> â India
- Pandercetes celebensis <small>, 1911</small> â Indonesia (Sulawesi)
- Pandercetes c. vulcanicola <small>Merian, 1911</small> â Indonesia (Sulawesi)
- Pandercetes decipiens <small>Pocock, 1899</small> â India, Sri Lanka
- Pandercetes gracilis <small>L. Koch, 1875</small> (type) â Indonesia (Moluccas, Sulawesi), New Guinea, Australia (Queensland)
- Pandercetes isopus <small>Thorell, 1881</small> â Indonesia (Moluccas), New Guinea
- Pandercetes longipes <small>Thorell, 1881</small> â Papua New Guinea (Yule Is.)
- Pandercetes macilentus <small>Thorell, 1895</small> â Myanmar
- Pandercetes malleator <small>Thorell, 1890</small> â Malaysia, Indonesia (Aru Is.)
- Pandercetes manoius <small>Roewer, 1938</small> â New Guinea
- Pandercetes niger <small>Merian, 1911</small> â Indonesia (Sulawesi)
- Pandercetes nigrogularis <small>(Simon, 1897)</small> â Indonesia (Java)
- Pandercetes ochreus <small>Hogg, 1922</small> â Vietnam
- Pandercetes palliventris <small>Strand, 1911</small> â New Guinea
- Pandercetes peronianus <small>(Walckenaer, 1837)</small> â New Zealand
- Pandercetes plumipes <small>(Doleschall, 1859)</small> â Sri Lanka, Indonesia (Ambon), New Guinea
- Pandercetes plumosus <small>Pocock, 1899</small> â Papua New Guinea (New Britain)
References
External links