Theridiidae Janula

Janula picta (Simon, 1895)

Speckled Red-eyed Spider

In both sexes, there is a characteristic knob at the centre of the dorsum, and a pair of short spines at both corners. All legs are pale in colour, except femora IV which are characteristically two-toned: brown anterio-dorsally and darker brown posterio-ventrally. The ocular tubercles are more pointed and slightly larger than those seen in other Janula spiders in Singapore.

The female can be separated from other Janula in Singapore by the rounded corners of an otherwise pentagonal abdomen. Most individuals have a chestnut brown abdomen with numerous light-coloured specks. but the colour may range from reddish brown to blackish brown.

The shape of the male abdomen may vary from one that looks like a diamond to one that looks like a rugby football. The male abdomen is speckled with more yellowish flecks than that of the female.

The original female specimen from which the species was described was collected by the French arachnologist Eugène Simon in Singapore in the late 19th century.