Austrarchaea hoskini Rix & Harvey 2012

Austrarchaea hoskini is a species of spider in the family Archaeidae. It is endemic to Australia.

Holotype male: Total length 3.44; leg I femur 3.59; F1/CL ratio 2.86. Cephalothorax dark reddish-brown; legs tan-brown with darker annulations; abdomen mottled grey-brown and beige, with darker brown dorsal scute and sclerites (Fig. 14B). Carapace very tall (CH/CL ratio 2.29); 1.26 long, 2.87 high, 1.21 wide, ‘neck’ 0.59 wide; bearing two pairs of rudimentary horns; highest point of pars cephalica (HPC) near posterior third of ‘head’ (ratio of HPC to post-ocular length 0.63), carapace almost horizontal posterior to HPC; ‘head’ not strongly elevated dorsally (post-ocular ratio 0.28). Chelicerae with short brush of accessory setae on anterior face of paturon (Fig. 14C). Abdomen 2.00 long, 1.54 wide; with two pairs of dorsal hump-like tubercles (HT 1-4); dorsal scute fused anteriorly to epigastric sclerites, extending posteriorly to first pair of hump-like tubercles; HT 3-4 each covered by separate dorsal sclerites. Unexpanded pedipalp (Figs 14D–F) of Type D morphology (Fig. 6), with large, prolaterally directed, arched conductor; embolus distally directed, sinuous, with prominent, rounded, fin-shaped spur proximal to distal kink in embolus, embolus projecting beyond distal rim of conductor by ~1/3 length of exposed embolic portion; tegular sclerite 3 (TS 3) very large, dagger-like, directed pro-ventrally across bulb; TS 2-2a forming looped, figure-of-eight-shaped structure in ventral view, TS 2 rounded distally, TS 2a projecting beyond distal rim of conductor to near tip of embolus; TS 1 very small, indistinct, probably embedded within haematodochal membranes. Allotype female: Total length 3.79; leg I femur 3.44; F1/CL ratio 2.44. Cephalothorax dark reddish-brown; legs tan-brown with darker annulations; abdomen mottled grey-brown and beige (Fig. 14A). Carapace tall (CH/CL ratio 2.10); 1.41 long, 2.96 high, 1.31 wide; ‘neck’ 0.72 wide; bearing two pairs of rudimentary horns; highest point of pars cephalica (HPC) approaching posterior quarter of ‘head’ (ratio of HPC to post-ocular length 0.71), carapace almost horizontal anterior and slightly posterior to HPC; ‘head’ not strongly elevated dorsally (post-ocular ratio 0.29). Chelicerae without accessory setae on anterior face of paturon. Abdomen 2.31 long, 1.87 wide; with four pairs of dorsal hump-like tubercles (HT 1-4). Internal genitalia (Fig. 14G) with cluster of ~6 variably-shaped spermathecae on either side of gonopore, clusters widely separated along midline of genital plate; innermost (anterior) spermathecae longest, sausage-shaped, bent laterally; other spermathecae variably sausage-shaped or pyriform. Variation: Males (n = 2): total length 3.38–3.44; carapace length 1.22–1.26; carapace height 2.78–2.87; CH/CL ratio 2.28–2.29. Females (n = 2): total length 3.59–3.79; carapace length 1.41 (invariable); carapace height 2.96–3.12; CH/CL ratio 2.10–2.21.

Austrarchaea hoskini is known only from Mount Elliot, 30 km south-east of Townsville (Figs 23, 25). The few known specimens were collected in high altitude rainforest along North Creek.