Faunal diversity of orb-weaver spiders (Araneidae: Araneomorphae: Araneae: Arachnida) in India

This review deals with the species diversity of the orb-weaving spiders (Araneidae: Araneae:Arachnida) in different states of India and the union territories. A total of 256 species belonging to 49 genera ofAraneidae were recorded in all states and the union territories of India except for Dadra & Nagar Haveli andDaman & Diu, out of which 99 species (38.4%) were strictly endemic. Two genera of orb-weaver spiders arehighly speciose, e.g. Araneus Clerck, 1757 (39 species) and Neoscona Simon, 1864 (36 species). About 119 speciesof these orb-weaver spiders were recorded from Maharashtra followed by 91 species from West Bengal, 81species from Kerala, 79 species from Karnataka, 75 species from Gujarat, 71 species from Tamil Nadu, 65 speciesfrom Assam, 63 species from Uttar Pradesh, 58 species from Uttarakhand, 57 species from Madhya Pradesh, 47species each from Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir, 41 species from Meghalaya, 34 species from Chhattisgarh, 32species from Goa, 31 species from Rajasthan, 29 species from Andaman and Nicobar Islands, 27 species fromAndhra Pradesh, 24 species from Sikkim, 21 species each from Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Tripura, andless than 20 species were recorded from other states and union territories. Seven species are distributed in morethan 20 states and union territories, viz. Argiope pulchella Thorell, 1881 (23 states, 3 union territories); Nephilapilipes (Fabricius, 1793) (24 states, 2 union territory); Neoscona mukerjei Tikader, 1980 (23 states, 1 unionterritory); Neoscona theisi (Walckenaer, 1837) (21 states, 3 union territories); Araneus mitificus (Simon, 1886)(21 states, 3 union territories); Argiope aemula (Walckenaer, 1837) (21 states, 2 union territories) and Eriovixiaexcelsa (Simon, 1889) (20 states, 2 union territories). Several species of Araneidae reported from India arerecorded only from one state or from the type locality. Hence, intensive and extensive faunistic surveys for thesespiders are required throughou