Wikipedia

Pseudicius dentatus

Pseudicius dentatus is a species of jumping spider in the genus Pseudicius that is endemic to South Africa. The spider was first defined in 2013 by Wanda Wesołowska and Charles Haddad. The spider is small, with an oval carapace between 1.7 and 2.0 mm (0.07 and 0.08 in) long and an abdomen between 1.7 and 2.9 mm (0.07 and 0.11 in) long. The female is larger than the male. The abdomen has a pattern of white spots in pairs. The female has two pockets lining the sides of the epigastric furrow in the epigyne. The male has a broader embolus than the otherwise similar Psenuc dependens. It can also be distinguished by its serrated palpal bulb that is recalled in its species name, which can be translated "toothed".

Pseudicius dentatus
An example of the related species Pseudicius kulczynskii
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Salticidae
Subfamily: Salticinae
Genus: Pseudicius
Species:
P. dentatus
Binomial name
Pseudicius dentatus
Wesołowska & Haddad, 2013

Taxonomy edit

Pseudicius dentatus is a jumping spider that was first described by the Polish arachnologist Wanda Wesołowska and Charles Haddad in 2013.[1] They allocated the species to the genus Pseudicius, first circumscribed by Eugène Simon in 1885.[2] The genus name is related to two Greek words that can be translated false and honest.[3] The genus was provisionally placed alongside Icius.[4] As they are superficially similar, Ekaterina Andreeva, Stefania Hęciak and Jerzy Prószyński looked to combine the genera in 1984.[5] The two genera have similar spermathecal structure but work by Wayne Maddison in 1987 demonstrated that they have very different DNA.[4] Also, despite the names looking similar, they have different etymologies.[6] They were kept separate, but recognised as related. The two genera were placed in the tribe Heliophaninae alongside Afraflacilla and Marchena.The tribe is ubiquitous across most continents of the world.[7] Maddison renamed the tribe Chrysillini in 2015.[8] The tribe is a member of the clade Saltafresia within the subfamily Salticoida.[9] A year later, in 2016, Jerzy Prószyński allocated the genus to the Pseudiciines group of genera, which was named after the genus.[10] Marchena is a member of the group, while Icius is not. They have flattened and elongated body and a characteristic colour pattern.[11] The species is named for a Latin word meaning "toothed".[12]

Description edit

Pseudicius dentatus is a small spider with a slender body. The male has a carapace that is between 1.7 and 1.8 mm (0.07 and 0.07 in) long and between 1.1 and 1.2 mm (0.04 and 0.05 in) wide. The carapace is oval and chocolate brown with a black marking to the edges and a streak formed of white hairs on its side. It has black rings with long, brown bristles around its eyes. The clypeus is very low and covered with white hairs. The chelicerae has a single large tooth to the back. The spider has a dark brown labium and sternum. The elongated abdomen is between 1.7 and 2.1 mm (0.07 and 0.08 in) long and between 1.0 and 1.2 mm (0.04 and 0.05 in) wide. It has a pattern of eight white patches in pairs on its greyish brown topside and a greyish underside. The spinnerets are dark and the legs are yellow with brown spines and hairs. The foremost legs are longer and more robust. The pedipalps are brown with a dense covering of long dark hairs. The tibia are short. The spider has a long embolus and the tip of the cymbium curves around the small and oval palpal bulb. The bulb has a distinctive serrated feature reminiscent of teeth, as reflected in the name.[13]

The female is similar to the male. The carapace is slightly lighter, measuring between 1.7 and 2.0 mm (0.067 and 0.079 in) long and between 1.1 and 1.4 mm (0.043 and 0.055 in) wide. The abdomen has a more distinctive pattern with larger spots on the topside and a covering of grey hairs. It is also larger, between 2.3 and 2.9 mm (0.091 and 0.114 in) long and between 1.3 and 1.5 mm (0.051 and 0.059 in) wide. The legs and other features are similar to the male. The spider has an elongated epigyne with a large deep central depression and two pockets lining the sides of the epigastric furrow.[13]

The species is similar to Psenuc dependens. The male can be distinguished by its broader embolus and its serrated palpal bulb.[12] The female has pockets on its epigyne, which the other species lacks, and gonopores in its epigastric furrow.[13]

Distribution edit

Pseudicius spiders can be found across Afro-Eurasia and the Eastern hemisphere.[14] Pseudicius dentatus is endemic to South Africa.[1] The holotype was found in the Ophathe Nature Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal during 2008. Other examples have been found in the Kruger National Park and Ndumo Game Reserve.[15]

References edit

Citations edit

  1. ^ a b World Spider Catalog (2017). "Pseudicius dentatus Wesolowska & Hadded, 2013". World Spider Catalog. 18.0. Bern: Natural History Museum. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
  2. ^ Wesołowska & Haddad 2013, p. 213.
  3. ^ Fernández-Rubio 2013, p. 129.
  4. ^ a b Maddison, Bodner & Needham 2008, p. 56.
  5. ^ Andreeva, Hęciak & Prószyński 1984, p. 349.
  6. ^ Fernández-Rubio 2013, p. 127.
  7. ^ Maddison & Hedin 2003, p. 541.
  8. ^ Maddison 2015, pp. 247, 252.
  9. ^ Maddison 2015, p. 278.
  10. ^ Prószyński 2017, p. 36.
  11. ^ Prószyński 2017, p. 42.
  12. ^ a b Wesołowska & Haddad 2013, p. 214.
  13. ^ a b c Wesołowska & Haddad 2013, p. 215.
  14. ^ Haddad & Wesołowska 2011, p. 109.
  15. ^ Wesołowska & Haddad 2013, p. 216.

Bibliography edit

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pseudicius_dentatus&oldid=1214576195"