Araneus drygalskii

Araneus drygalskii
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Araneidae
Genus: Araneus
Species:
A. drygalskii
Binomial name
Araneus drygalskii
(Strand, 1909)[1]

Araneus drygalskii is a species of spider in the family Araneidae.[2] It is endemic to the Western Cape of South Africa.[3]

Distribution

Araneus drygalskii is known only from Simon's Town in the Western Cape, at an altitude of 86 m above sea level.[3]

Habitat and ecology

The male specimen was collected on 21 July 1903 from the Fynbos biome. Nothing is known about their behaviour.[3]

Description

Conservation

Araneus drygalskii is listed as Data Deficient for Taxonomic reasons. The species is known from a single locality and identification is problematic as no drawings were provided in the original description, which is not detailed enough for species identification.[3]

Taxonomy

The species was originally described as Aranea drygalskii by Embrik Strand in 1909 from Simonstown.[1] Due to the absence of type material in combination with the lack of recollection and illustration, there are strong arguments to consider this species as a nomen dubium.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b Strand, E. (1909). "Spinnentiere von Südafrika und einigen Inseln gesammelt bei der deutschen Südpolar-Expedition". Deutsche Südpolar-Expedition 1901-1905. 10 (5): 541–596.
  2. ^ "Araneus drygalskii (Strand, 1909)". World Spider Catalog. Retrieved 2025-09-25.
  3. ^ a b c d e Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N.; Webb, P. (2022). The Araneidae of South Africa. Version 2: part 1 (A-C). South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 19. doi:10.5281/zenodo.6326922. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.