Allocosa gracilitarsis

Polokwane Allocosa Wolf Spider
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Order:	Araneae
Infraorder:	Araneomorphae
Family:	Lycosidae
Genus:	Allocosa
Species:	A. gracilitarsis
Binomial name
	Allocosa gracilitarsis; (Purcell, 1903)
Synonyms
	Lycosa gracilitarsisPurcell, 1903 ;

Last updated October 03, 2025

Allocosa gracilitarsis is a species of spider in the family Lycosidae.^[2] It is commonly known as the Polokwane Allocosa wolf spider.^[3]

Distribution

Allocosa gracilitarsis is known from Namibia and South Africa. In South Africa, the species is known from the five provinces Eastern Cape, Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, and Northern Cape.^[3]

Habitat and ecology

The species is a free-running ground dweller sampled from the Grassland, Nama Karoo, and Savanna Biomes at altitudes ranging from 1096 to 1762 m.^[3]

Description

Conservation

Allocosa gracilitarsis is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide geographical distribution range. The species is protected in the Tsolwana Nature Reserve and Klipriviersberg Nature Reserve.^[3]

Taxonomy

The species was originally described in 1903 from a Mission Station near Pietersburg (now Polokwane).^[1] The species was revised by Roewer in 1959 and is known from both sexes.^[3]

References

1 2 Purcell, W.F. (1903). "New South African spiders of the families Migidae, Ctenizidae, Barychelidae, Dipluridae, and Lycosidae". Annals of the South African Museum. 3: 69–142.
1 2 "Allocosa gracilitarsis (Purcell, 1903)". Natural History Museum Bern. World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2 . Retrieved 2025-10-01.
1 2 3 4 5 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. 11. doi:10.5281/zenodo.6324709. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.

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[purcell1903-1] 1 2 Purcell, W.F. (1903). "New South African spiders of the families Migidae, Ctenizidae, Barychelidae, Dipluridae, and Lycosidae". Annals of the South African Museum. 3: 69–142.

[wsc-2] 1 2 "Allocosa gracilitarsis (Purcell, 1903)". Natural History Museum Bern. World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2 . Retrieved 2025-10-01.

[dippenaar2021-3] 1 2 3 4 5 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. 11. doi:10.5281/zenodo.6324709. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.

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