Katipo

The katipo, Latrodectus katipoensis, is a species of widow spider native to the coastal sand dunes of New Zealand, a close relative of the Australian redback spider and the North American black widow within the same genus. It is New Zealand's only native venomous spider of medical significance, identifiable by the red stripe running down the back of the female's glossy black or dark brown abdomen, and habitat loss along developed coastlines has made it a threatened species in much of its former range.