Zelotes mashonus
| Mashonaland Dark Ground Spider | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Gnaphosidae |
| Genus: | Zelotes |
| Species: | Z. mashonus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Zelotes mashonus FitzPatrick, 2007[1]
| |
Zelotes mashonus is a species of spider in the family Gnaphosidae.[2] It is found in Africa and is commonly known as the Mashonaland dark ground spider.[3]
Distribution
Zelotes mashonus occurs in four African countries: Democratic Republic of the Congo, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.[2] In South Africa, it is recorded only from KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga. The species occurs at an altitude of 2,998 m above sea level.[3]
Collection localities include Mont-Aux-Sources and Embuleni Nature Reserve.[3]
Description
Habitat and ecology
Zelotes mashonus are free-running ground spiders found under stones during the day in the Savanna biome.[3]
Conservation
Zelotes mashonus is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide geographic range in Africa. There are no significant threats to the species, and it is protected in the Embuleni Nature Reserve.[3]
Taxonomy
The species was described by FitzPatrick in 2007 from Zimbabwe. The species is known only from the female.[3]
References
- ^ FitzPatrick, M.J. (2007). "A taxonomic revision of the Afrotropical species of Zelotes (Arachnida: Araneae: Gnaphosidae)". Bulletin of the British Arachnological Society. 14 (3): 97–172. doi:10.13156/arac.2011.14.3.97.
- ^ a b "Zelotes mashonus FitzPatrick, 2007". World Spider Catalog. Retrieved 2025-09-25.
- ^ a b c d e f Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2021). The Gnaphosidae of South Africa. Part 4 (Z). Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. pp. 30–31. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7197783. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.