''Gasteracantha versicolor'', known as the long-winged kite spider, is a species of diurnal

spiny orb-weaver ''Gasteracantha'' is a genus of orb-weaver spiders first named by Carl Jakob Sundevall in 1833. Species of the genus are known as spiny-backed orb-weavers, spiny orb-weavers, or spiny spiders. The females of most species are brightly colored wi ...

of the family

Araneidae Orb-weaver spiders are members of the spider family Araneidae. They are the most common group of builders of spiral wheel-shaped webs often found in gardens, fields, and forests. The English word "orb" can mean "circular", hence the English name ...

. It is found in the tropics and sub-tropics, where it occurs in forests. It has an extensive range, from central, east and southern

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. The female is 8 to 10 mm long, with a large, glossy and brightly coloured abdomen, like others of their genus. The hardened (sclerotised) abdomen projects over the cephalothorax and has six peripheral spines, with the lateral pair medium to long and slightly recurved in this species. Males are much smaller, less colourful and lack the thorny abdominal projections. The web has densely spaced radii and an open hub, and may be placed from near ground level to several meters up. Their venom is not known to be dangerous to man.

Races

* ''G. v. avaratrae'' Emerit, 1974 – Madagascar * ''G. v. formosa'' Vinson, 1863 – Madagascar * ''G. v. versicolor'' (Walckenaer, 1841) – mainland Africa

References

versicolor Spiders described in 1841 Spiders of Africa {{Araneidae-stub