Arctosa promontorii
| Table Mountain Arctosa Wolf Spider | |
|---|---|
| female with egg sac | |
| female with egg sac | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Lycosidae |
| Genus: | Arctosa |
| Species: | A. promontorii
|
| Binomial name | |
| Arctosa promontorii (Pocock, 1900)
| |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Arctosa promontorii is a species of spider in the family Lycosidae.[1] It is endemic to South Africa and is commonly known as the Table Mountain Arctosa wolf spider.[2]
Distribution
Arctosa promontorii has been recorded from three provinces in South Africa at elevations ranging from 9 to 1399 m.[2] The species is known from six protected areas.[2]
Habitat
The species is a free-running ground dweller sampled from the Grassland and Fynbos biomes, as well as from vineyards.[2]
Description
Arctosa promontorii is known only from the female, though a male has been collected but not yet described.[2]
Females are dark in colour with a carapace bearing a narrow white submarginal stripe. The abdomen is dark reddish grey above and mottled black, marked with a short paler median stripe anteriorly. The abdomen is entirely black below, with the coxae and sternum deep blackish brown.[3]
The legs are mottled with dark and paler spots, and the chelicerae are scantily clothed with yellow setae.[3]
The total length is approximately 13 mm.[3]
Conservation
Arctosa promontorii is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute. Although the species is currently known only from one sex, it has a wide geographical range.[2] It has been recorded from six protected areas.[2]
Taxonomy
The species was originally described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1900 as Lycosa promontorii from Wynberg Caves in Table Mountain National Park.[3] Roewer revised the species in 1960.[4]
References
- ^ a b "Arctosa promontorii (Pocock, 1900)". World Spider Catalog. World Spider Catalog. Natural History Museum Bern. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
- ^ a b c d e f g Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2021). The Lycosidae of South Africa. Version 1: part 1 (A-H). South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 31. doi:10.5281/zenodo.6324709. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
- ^ a b c d Pocock, R.I. (1900). "Some new Arachnida from Cape Colony". Annals and Magazine of Natural History. 7. 6 (33): 316–333. doi:10.1080/00222930008678382.
- ^ Roewer, C.F. (1960). "Araneae Lycosaeformia II (Lycosidae) (Fortsetzung und Schluss)". Exploration du Parc National de l'Upemba, Mission G. F. de Witte. 55: 519–1040.