189 accepted species; see text.
Heteropoda is a genus of spiders in the family Sparassidae, the huntsman spiders. They are mainly distributed in tropical Asia and Australia, while at least one species, H. venatoria, has a cosmopolitan distribution,[1] and H. variegata occurs in the Mediterranean.[2]
These spiders catch and eat insects, but in a laboratory study one species readily ate fish and tadpoles when offered.[1] H. venatoria has also been known to eat scorpions and bats.[3]
The largest species in the genus, H. maxima, is about 4.6 centimeters long but has a legspan of up to 30 centimeters, making it the largest of any extant spider.[4]
As of August 2022, there were 189 species in the genus, after series of revisions.[5][6]
Lokasi Pengunjung: 3.137.216.196