Monggo orbweaver (Neoscona menghaiensis)

Monggo orbweaver (Neoscona menghaiensis) is a species of spider belonging to the family Araneidae. It is a small, arboreal spider characterized by a round or oval-shaped carapace and a body covered in white or black hairs. Its back features a distinctive triangular pattern, and it typically inhabits the stems and foliage of shrubs and low-growing trees.



Females measure 6.00–7.70 mm in total length, with a cephalothorax 3.00 mm long and 2.60 mm wide, and an abdomen 4.90 mm long and 4.80 mm wide. The anterior median eyes are larger than the anterior lateral eyes and slightly larger than the posterior median eyes. The arrangement of the eyes shows a slightly procurved anterior row and a slightly recurved posterior row.

The cephalothorax is brownish, with a yellowish-brown thoracic region. The head area features fine longitudinal lines and a cervical groove; three dark spots are arranged in a triangle anterior to the median groove. The median groove is elongated and reddish-brown in color. The sternum is grayish-brown with a yellowish-brown central stripe.

The abdomen is roughly triangular, with a grayish-brown dorsal surface interspersed with yellowish-brown tones. The dorsal pattern includes a leaf-shaped marking in the center and brownish, cone-shaped spots along the anterior margin. The anterior lateral edges feature four pairs of brownish, crescent-shaped spots, while the posterior-central region has shallow, wave-like indentations on both sides, with dark brown edges and yellowish-brown spots interspersed between them.

Males are smaller, with a body length of 4.90 mm; the cephalothorax measures 2.50 mm in length and 2.10 mm in width, while the abdomen measures 2.60 mm in length and 2.20 mm in width. The arrangement of the eyes features a strongly recurved anterior row, with the anterior median eyes being larger than the anterior lateral eyes.

Males are generally similar to females; however, their abdominal pattern includes a median groove that tapers toward the front—this section is wider than the corresponding part in female specimens and larger than the posterior marginal area.

TAXON

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Suborder: Araneomorphae
Infraorder: Entelegynae
Superfamily: Araneoidea
Family: Araneidae
Subfamily: Araneinae
Genus: Neoscona E. Simon (1864)
Species: Neoscona menghaiensis Yin, Wang, Xie & Peng (1990)

VERNACULAR NAME

Chinese (simplified): 勐海新园蛛
Chinese (traditional): 勐海新園蛛
English: Monggo orbweaver
Hong Kong: 勐海新園蛛
Indonesia: Laba-laba monggo
Java: Kemonggo monggo
Macao: 勐海新園蛛
Taiwan: 勐海新園蛛

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