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Gasteracantha
(Spiny Orb-weavers)

Gasteracantha, commonly known as Spiny Orb-weavers, is a genus of spiders in the family Araneidae. Gasteracantha spiders have been sighted 84 times by contributing members. Based on collected data, the geographic range for Gasteracantha includes 15 countries and 11 states in the United States. Gasteracantha is most often sighted outdoors, and during the month of January.

Taxonomic Hierarchy

  • Kingdom: Animalia
  • Phylum: Arthropoda
  • Class: Arachnida
  • Order: Araneae
  • Suborder: Araneomorphae
  • Family: Araneidae
  • Genus: Gasteracantha

Other Common Names

Spiny Orb-weavers

Author

Carl Jakob Sundevall, 1833

Sightings Overview

There have been 84 confirmed sightings of Gasteracantha (Spiny Orb-weavers), with the most recent sighting submitted on January 4, 2025 by Spider ID member bemidjimac. The detailed statistics below may not utilize the complete dataset of 84 sightings because of certain Gasteracantha sightings reporting incomplete data.

  • Web: 83% of the time, Gasteracantha spiders are sighted in a spider web (Sample size: 84)
  • Sex: 8 female and 1 male.
  • Environment: Gasteracantha has been sighted 91 times outdoors, and 4 times indoors.
  • Outdoors: Man-made structure (27). On flower (1). Low foliage (29). High foliage (25). Freshwater river, lake, stream (1). Open field, pasture, grassland (1). Forest (7).

Location and Range

Gasteracantha (Spiny Orb-weavers) has been sighted in the following countries: Australia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Ghana, Honduras, India, Laos, Malaysia, Mexico, Panama, South Africa, United States, Zambia.

Gasteracantha has also been sighted in the following states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia.

Seasonality

Gasteracantha has been primarily sighted during the month of January.

  • January: 13
  • February: 8
  • March: 12
  • April: 6
  • May: 12
  • June: 2
  • July: 6
  • August: 4
  • September: 4
  • October: 6
  • November: 6
  • December: 5

Gasteracantha Species


Featured Pictures

Picture of Gasteracantha spp. (Spiny Orb-weavers) - Dorsal Enlarge Picture
Picture of Gasteracantha spp. (Spiny Orb-weavers) - Dorsal Enlarge Picture
Picture of Gasteracantha spp. (Spiny Orb-weavers) - Male - Dorsal Enlarge Picture
Picture of Gasteracantha spp. (Spiny Orb-weavers) - Dorsal Enlarge Picture
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