Tetragnathidae Dolichognatha

"Dolichognatha" sp. "Spiny-legged"

Spiny-legged Humped Spider

This species is provisionally parked under the genus Dolichognatha based purely on its large AME and superficial resemblance with some Dolichognatha with four abdominal tubercles such as Dolichognatha sp. B. However, whether it is indeed a Dolichognatha remains an open question. While the abdomen of most Dolichognatha is short with the spinnerets pointing downwards, the abdomen in this species is longer than broad, with the spinnerets set in a more backward direction. In this species, the PME are well separated, and not touching each other as in Dolichognatha sp. B and most other Dolichognatha species with PME. While legs I and II of most Dolichognatha are sparsely spined, the tibiae and metatarsi of legs I and II of this species are armed with a dense comb of spines of unequal length, superficially resembling those of Mimetidae but significantly different in details. The female copulatory organ is also not consistent with those seen in typical Dolichognatha; it superficially resembles those of Chorizopes, a genus of araneids not found in Singapore. However, the tarsi IV of this species lack the "sustentaculum" (a hooked microscopic spine) characteristic of all araneids.