Austrarchaea alani Rix & Harvey 2011

Austrarchaea alani is a species of spider in the family Archaeidae. It is endemic to south-east Queensland, Australia where it is found in the Kroombit Tops National Park.

Holotype male: Total length 2.69; leg I femur 2.83; F1/CL ratio 2.68. Cephalothorax reddish-brown; legs tan-brown with darker annulations; abdomen mottled grey-brown and beige, with darker reddish-brown dorsal scute and sclerites (Fig. 18B). Carapace very tall (CH/CL ratio 2.28); 1.06 long, 2.41 high, 0.97 wide; ‘neck’ 0.49 wide; bearing two pairs of rudimentary horns; highest point of pars cephalica (HPC) near posterior margin of ‘head’ (ratio of HPC to post-ocular length 0.85), carapace gently sloping anterior to HPC; ‘head’ moderately elevated postero-dorsally (post-ocular ratio 0.35) (Fig. 8A). Chelicerae with short comb of accessory setae on anterior face of paturon (Fig. 18C). Abdomen 1.38 long, 0.92 wide; with three pairs of dorsal hump-like tubercles (HT 1–6); dorsal scute fused anteriorly to epigastric sclerites, extending posteriorly to first pair of hump-like tubercles; HT 3–6 each covered by separate dorsal sclerites. Unexpanded pedipalp (Figs 18D-F) with broad, obliquely-angled foliate conductor; tegular sclerite 1 (TS 1) relatively short, almost triangular, obscured by conductor in retrolateral view; TS 2 thin, spiniform, longer than TS 1; TS 2a sinuous, largely obscured by TS 2; TS 3 very large, porrect, with broadly-pointed rectangular apex projecting well beyond retro-distal rim of tegulum. Allotype female: Total length 3.41; leg I femur 3.06; F1/CL ratio 2.66. Cephalothorax dark reddish-brown; legs tan-brown with darker annulations; abdomen mottled grey-brown and beige (Fig. 18A). Carapace very tall (CH/CL ratio 2.30); 1.15 long, 2.65 high, 1.04 wide; ‘neck’ 0.56 wide; bearing two pairs of rudimentary horns; highest point of pars cephalica (HPC) near posterior margin of ‘head’ (ratio of HPC to post-ocular length 0.81), carapace sloping gently anterior to HPC; ‘head’ strongly elevated postero-dorsally (post-ocular ratio 0.38) (Fig. 7A). Chelicerae without accessory setae on anterior face of paturon. Abdomen 1.97 long, 1.38 wide; with three pairs of dorsal hump-like tubercles (HT 1–6). Internal genitalia with dense cluster of ≤ 15 variably shaped spermathecae on either side of gonopore, clusters meeting near midline of genital plate (Fig. 18G); innermost (anterior) spermathecae longest, sausage-shaped, curved antero-laterally; outermost (posterior) spermathecae bulbous; other spermathecae variably pyriform, straight, directed antero-laterally. Variation: Males (n=2): total length 2.26–2.69; carapace length 1.03–1.06; carapace height 2.33–2.41; CH/CL ratio 2.28 (invariable). Females (n=4): total length 3.18–3.44; carapace length 1.15–1.18; carapace height 2.58–2.82; CH/CL ratio 2.23–2.39.

Austrarchaea alani is known only from rainforest habitats in the Kroombit Tops National Park of south-eastern Queensland (Fig. 36). Conservation status. This species appears to be a short-range endemic taxon (Harvey 2002b), which although potentially restricted in distribution, is abundant within the Kroombit Tops National Park (M. Rix, pers. obs.). It is not considered to be of conservation concern.