Muritaia orientalis explained

Muritaia orientalis is a species of Amaurobiidae spider that is endemic to New Zealand.^[1]

Taxonomy

This species was described in 1973 by Ray Forster and Cecil Wilton from a female specimen. The holotype is stored in Otago Museum.

Description

The female is recorded at 3.60mm in length. The carapace is coloured pale yellowish brown with dark shading. The legs are banded. The abdomen has olive grey shading with pale markings.

Distribution

This species is only known from Hawkes Bay, New Zealand.

Conservation status

Under the New Zealand Threat Classification System, this species is listed as "Data Deficient" with the qualifiers of "Data Poor: Size", "Data Poor: Trend" and "One Location".^[2]

Notes and References

1. Forster, R. R. & Wilton, C. L. (1973). The spiders of New Zealand. Part IV. Otago Museum Bulletin 4: 1-309
2. Sirvid . P. J. . Vink . C. J. . Fitzgerald . B. M. . Wakelin . M. D. . Rolfe . J. . Michel . P. . 2020-01-01 . Conservation status of New Zealand Araneae (spiders), 2020 . New Zealand Threat Classification Series . English . 34 . 1–37.