Description
English: Hasselt's spiny spider, gasteracantha hasselti - Kaeng Krachan National Park, Thailand Photo by Rushenb
Date 31 December 2013
Author Rushenb https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Rushenb
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hasselt%27s_spiny_spider,_gasteracantha_hasselti_-_Kaeng_Krachan_National_Park.jpg

Gasteracantha hasselti, commonly known as Hasselt's spiny spider, is a species of spider belonging to the family Araneidae. It is a native of Asia, occurring from India eastwards to Indonesia. Typical of this genus of spiny orb-weaver spiders, the male of this species is small and rather nondescript but the female is rather larger and very colourful. She is usually around 8 mm in length (excluding legs). The carapace has a dense covering of white hairs. The abdomen is roughly triangular and bright orange with 12 black spots arranged in two rows along the back and six black spikes around the margin, the two at the rear corners being much the longest, straight and pointed. Order: Araneae, Infraorder: Araneomorphae, Family: Araneidae, Genus: Gasteracantha, Species: Gasteracantha hasselti C. L. Koch, 1837.