Gasteracantha mengei
Gasteracantha mengei is a species of spider in the spiny orb-weaver genus Gasteracantha. Its range includes Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Borneo, and Sumatra in Indonesia.
Description
Female Gasteracantha mengei are distinctive in that they lack rear spines on the abdomen. The abdomen is flat and dark brown in color, and more than twice as wide as long. The abdomen bears two pairs of spines instead of three pairs, like most other species in the genus. The larger median spines are tapered and angled slightly backward, close to 5 mm each in length. The smaller anterior spines are half to a third of that length and are oriented parallel to the larger spines.The upper surface of the abdomen fluoresces blue-green under ultraviolet light.