Araneus exsertus Rainbow, 1904

W. Framenau, Volker, 2019, Generic and family transfers, and numina dubia for orb-weaving spiders (Araneae, Araneidae) in the Australasian, Oriental and Pacific regions, Evolutionary Systematics 3 (1), pp. 1-27 : 13

Araneus exsertus Rainbow, 1904 Fig. 9C, D

Araneus exsertus Rainbow, 1904: 28-29, figs 26-27.

Type material.

Holotype of Araneus exsertus Rainbow, 1904: immature female, Mornington Island (16 36'S, 139 21'E, Queensland, AUSTRALIA), Mr. Chas Hedley (AM KS6516) (examined).

Remarks.

The abdomen of the holotype of Araneus exsertus is characteristically extended with numerous humps (Figs 9C, D), suggesting an identification could be possible based on somatic characters alone. However, my investigations of Australian araneids revealed this abdomen shape to be shared by a number of species with extended distributions that include the type locality of A. exsertus . Therefore, species-level identification of this species is not possible and I consider it a nomen dubium.