Hippasa
| Hippasa | |
|---|---|
| Hippasa sp. in funnel web | |
| Female H. australis from South Africa | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Lycosidae |
| Genus: | Hippasa Simon, 1885 |
| Type species | |
| Hippasa agelenoides (Simon, 1884)
| |
| Species | |
|
24, see text | |
Hippasa is a genus of spiders in the wolf spider family Lycosidae, first described by Eugène Simon in 1885.[1]
Distribution
Hippasa species are distributed across Africa (Egypt to South Africa) and Asia (Pakistan to Japan).[2]
Life style
Hippasa species prefer low, grassy vegetation with open spaces.[3]
They construct an agelenid-like funnel web between low vegetation or between roots at ground level. The web consists of a densely woven sheet with a funnel retreat leading into the ground or dense vegetation. Their webs can be seen early in the morning.[3]
Juveniles can be present in high densities, covering grass with webs.[3]
Description
The genus can be recognized by the two-segmented posterior pair of spinnerets, with the basal segment especially elongated, and by white spots on the abdomen. The body is covered with long setae. The carapace is usually dark with lateral margins and bands, and the fovea has radiating striae. The legs are relatively long and usually banded.[3]
The epigyne is thickly covered with white setae. The sternum is usually pale with a dark median stripe.[3]
Taxonomy
The genus was revised by Alderweireldt and Jocqué in 2005.[4]
Species
-
H. agelenoides
-
H. elienae
-
H. holmerae
-
Hippasa sp.
As of September 2025, this genus includes 24 species:[2]
- Hippasa affinis Lessert, 1933 – Angola
- Hippasa agelenoides (Simon, 1884) – Myanmar, India, Pakistan (type species)
- Hippasa albopunctata Thorell, 1899 – Cameroon, Ivory Coast
- Hippasa australis Lawrence, 1927 – Africa
- Hippasa brechti Alderweireldt & Jocqué, 2005 – Ivory Coast, Togo
- Hippasa decemnotata Simon, 1909 – West Africa
- Hippasa deserticola Simon, 1889 – Egypt, Asia
- Hippasa elienae Alderweireldt & Jocqué, 2005 – Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa
- Hippasa flavicoma Caporiacco, 1935 – Pakistan
- Hippasa funerea Lessert, 1925 – Botswana, Lesotho, South Africa
- Hippasa himalayensis Gravely, 1924 – India, Pakistan
- Hippasa holmerae Thorell, 1895 – Asia
- Hippasa innesi Simon, 1889 – Egypt
- Hippasa lamtoensis Dresco, 1981 – Ivory Coast
- Hippasa lingxianensis Yin & Wang, 1980 – China, Japan
- Hippasa loundesi Gravely, 1924 – India
- Hippasa lycosina Pocock, 1900 – China, Laos, India
- Hippasa madraspatana Gravely, 1924 – India
- Hippasa marginata Roewer, 1960 – Cameroon
- Hippasa olivacea (Thorell, 1887) – Myanmar, India
- Hippasa pantherina Pocock, 1899 – Southern Asia
- Hippasa partita (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1876) – Africa
- Hippasa simoni (Thorell, 1887) – Myanmar
- Hippasa valiveruensis Patel & Reddy, 1993 – India
References
- ^ Simon, Eugène (1885). "Matériaux pour servir à la faune arachnologiques de l'Asie méridionale. I. Arachnides recueillis à Wagra-Karoor près Gundacul, district de Bellary par M. M. Chaper. II. Arachnides recueillis à Ramnad, district de Madura par M. l'abbé Fabre". Bulletin de la Société Zoologique de France. 10: 1–39, 461–462.
- ^ a b "Genus Hippasa". World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ a b c d e 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. 52. doi:10.5281/zenodo.6324709. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
- ^ Alderweireldt, M.; Jocqué, R. (2005). "A taxonomic review of the Afrotropical representatives of the genus Hippasa (Araneae, Lycosidae)". Journal of Afrotropical Zoology. 2: 45–68.