Rhene punctatus is a species of jumping spider in the genus Rhene that lives in South Africa. The male was identified in 2013 and has distinctive black dots on its abdomen, which gives rise to its name.
| Rhene punctatus | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Salticidae |
| Subfamily: | Salticinae |
| Genus: | Rhene |
| Species: | R. punctatus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Rhene punctatus Wesołowska & Haddad, 2013
| |
Taxonomy
editRhene punctatus was first identified by Wanda Wesołowska and Charles Haddad in 2013.[1] It was allocated to the genus Rhene, which is named after the Greek female name, shared by mythological figures.[2] The species name is derived from the Latin for point, punctus, and relates to the dotted pattern on the abdomen.[3]
Description
editOnly the male of the species has been described. The spider is flat, stocky and hairy. It has a flat, almost square, dark brown carapace that is 1.8 millimetres (0.071 in) in length. The abdomen is pale brown with a pattern of black dots and is 2.1 millimetres (0.083 in) long. Both the carapace and abdomens are covered with dense white hairs.[3]
Distribution
editRhene punctatus has only been found in the Cathedral Peak Nature Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.[3]
References
edit- ^ World Spider Catalog (2017). "Rhene punctatus Wesolowska & Haddad, 2013". World Spider Catalog. 18.0. Bern: Natural History Museum. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
- ^ Thorell, Tamerlan (1869). On European Spiders, Part 1: Review of the European Genera of Spiders, Preceded by Some Observations on Zoological Nomenclature. p. 37.
- ^ a b c Wesołowska, W.; Haddad, C. R. (2013). "New data on the jumping spiders of South Africa (Araneae: Salticidae)". African Invertebrates. 54 (1): 225–226. doi:10.5733/afin.054.0111. S2CID 59450669. Retrieved 22 August 2017.