Hadronyche infensa

Hadronyche infensa, the Darling Downs funnel-web spider, is a venomous mygalomorph spider, one of a number of Australian funnel-web spiders found in Queensland and New South Wales.

Hadronyche infensa
male specimen on display at the Australian Museum
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Mygalomorphae
Family: Atracidae
Genus: Hadronyche
Species:
H. infensa
Binomial name
Hadronyche infensa
(Hickman, 1964)
Synonyms

Atrax infensus Hickman

Taxonomy

The Darling Downs funnel-web spider was described by Hickman in 1964 as Atrax infensus before being moved to the genus Hadronyche in 1988. The type specimen is a male spider that was collected in Toowoomba, Queensland, in 1963.[1] Within the genus, it is a member of the infensa group, which contains several described and undescribed species in central New South Wales and southern Queensland.[1]

Description

Like many Australian funnel-web spider species, both sexes of the Darling Downs funnel-web spider have a shiny black carapace and dark brown to black legs, chelicerae and abdomen. The carapace is longer than it is wide. The abdomen of the male has a pale patch underneath.[1]

Distribution and habitat

The Darling Downs funnel-web spider is found in eastern Australia, ranging from southeast Queensland to the northeastern portion of New South Wales.[1]

Toxicity

The venom of male and female Darling Downs funnel-web spiders is of equal toxicity.[2] Two out of 14 recorded cases of being bitten by a Darling Downs funnel-web spider have resulted in severe symptoms of envenomation . Bites from female spiders have also resulted in milder cases of envenomation. The venom can be successfully treated with the antivenom for the related Sydney funnel-web spider (Atrax robustus).[3]

The venom of the Darling Downs funnel-web spider becomes more toxic in early summer, after the spider has been fasting over the winter.[2] Male Darling Downs funnel-web spiders at this time are mobile and searching for a mate, meaning that people are more at risk of encountering them and being bitten.[2]

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References
  1. Gray, Michael R. (24 November 2010). "A revision of the Australian funnel-web spiders (Hexathelidae: Atracinae)" (PDF). Records of the Australian Museum. 62 (3): 285–392. doi:10.3853/j.0067-1975.62.2010.1556. ISSN 0067-1975.
  2. Miller MK, Whyte IM, White J, Keir PM (2000). "Clinical features and management of Hadronyche envenomation in man". Toxicon. 38 (3): 409–27. doi:10.1016/S0041-0101(99)00171-3. PMID 10669029.
  3. Isbister G, Gray M, Balit C, Raven R, Stokes B, Porges K, Tankel A, Turner E, White J, Fisher M. "Funnel-web spider bite: a systematic review of recorded clinical cases". Medical Journal of Australia. 182 (#8).

Data related to Hadronyche infensa at Wikispecies Media related to Hadronyche infensa at Wikimedia Commons

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