Heteropoda tetrica

Heteropoda tetrica is a species of huntsman spider in the genus Heteropoda. It was first described by Tamerlan Thorell in 1897.^[1]

The species was originally described by Thorell in 1897 based on both male and female specimens from the Carin Hills (now known as the Karen Hills) in Myanmar.^[1] The lectotype is housed at the Natural History Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen, with additional paralectotypes at the Zoological Museum Hamburg.^[2]

H. tetrica is distributed from China to Indonesia (Sumatra).^[2] The species has been recorded from various locations across Southeast Asia, with detailed studies documenting its presence in Myanmar, Thailand, and southern China, particularly in Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture.^[3]

Heteropoda tetrica is a medium to large-sized huntsman spider. Females can reach a body length of up to 30 millimeters with a leg span significantly larger, while males are generally smaller at around 24 millimeters in body length.^[1] The species exhibits the typical flattened body form characteristic of huntsman spiders.

The coloration is generally dark brown to blackish-brown, sometimes with a reddish tinge. The body is covered with dense olive-colored or testaceous-olive pubescence. The abdomen may show a narrow longitudinal pale stripe anteriorly. The legs and palps are covered with dense reddish or sub-testaceous-olive pubescence.^[1]

Males can be distinguished from females by their longer legs, more closely spaced eyes, and distinctive palpal structure. The male palps are elongated with a characteristic tibial apophysis that forms a long oblique transverse ridge, with the superior-anterior angle producing a long, strong process.^[1]

The female epigyne consists of two oblong diverging elevations that are rounded posteriorly and truncated anteriorly, closely adjacent to each other and separated by a narrow longitudinal groove.^[1]