Porrhothele is a genus of mygalomorph spiders endemic to New Zealand. They are the only members of the family Porrhothelidae. They were first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1892.[2] Originally placed with the curtain web spiders,[2] it was moved to the Hexathelidae in 1980,[3] they were placed in their own family in 2018.[4]
| Porrhothele | |
|---|---|
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| Porrhothele antipodiana | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Mygalomorphae |
| Family: | Porrhothelidae Hedin & Bond, 2018 |
| Genus: | Porrhothele Simon, 1892[1] |
| Type species | |
| P. antipodiana (Walckenaer, 1837) | |
| Species | |
5, see text | |
Members of Porrhothelidae are distinguished from other mygalomorph spiders by the small posterior sigillae and a single row of teeth on the forward-facing margin of the chelicerae. Males have many strong spines on the forward-facing margin of their tibiae.[4]
Taxonomy
The genus Porrhothele was erected by Eugène Simon in 1892 for the species Porrhothele antipodiana. Simon transferred these from Mygale, a genus previously used for many mygalomorph spiders, but is no longer in use. He placed this genus in the subfamily Diplurinae,[2] which later became the family Dipluridae. Raven transferred the genus to Hexathelidae,[3] where it remained until the results of a 2018 molecular phylogenetic study suggested that it belongs in its own family.[4]
The following cladogram shows the possible relationship of Porrhothele to related taxa.
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Species
As of May 2019[update] it contains five species, all found in New Zealand:[1]
- Porrhothele antipodiana (Walckenaer, 1837) (type) – New Zealand
- Porrhothele blanda Forster, 1968 – New Zealand
- Porrhothele moana Forster, 1968 – New Zealand
- Porrhothele modesta Forster, 1968 – New Zealand
- Porrhothele quadrigyna Forster, 1968 – New Zealand
References
