They are mainly distributed in tropical Asia and Australia, while at least one species, H. venatoria, has a cosmopolitan distribution,[1] and H. variegata occurs in the Mediterranean.

[2] These spiders catch and eat insects, but in a laboratory study one species readily ate fish and tadpoles when offered.

[1] H. venatoria has also been known to eat scorpions and bats.

[3] The largest species in the genus, H. maxima, is about 4.6 centimeters long but has a legspan of up to 30 centimeters, making it the largest of any extant spider.

[4] As of August 2022, there were 189 species in the genus, after series of revisions.