| Steinkopf Anyphops Flat Spider | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Selenopidae |
| Genus: | Anyphops |
| Species: | A. stridulans |
| Binomial name | |
| Anyphops stridulans | |
Anyphops stridulans is a species of spider in the family Selenopidae. [2] It is endemic to the Northern Cape of South Africa and is commonly known as the Steinkopf Anyphops flat spider. [3]
Anyphops stridulans is known only from the type locality of Steinkopf in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. [3]
The species inhabits the Succulent Karoo biome at an altitude of 870 m above sea level. [3] These are free-living cryptozoic nocturnal ground living spiders that have been sampled from under stones. [3]
Anyphops stridulans is known from only the male. The carapace is pale yellow, almost without markings, with a few indistinct darker spots near the lateral margin and a dark bar behind each eye surrounded by large black areas. [3]
The abdomen is yellow with a few minute spots at the sides of the posterior extremity. Legs are yellow with a few indistinct blackish spots and stripes. The tibiae I and II have 6 pairs of inferior spines, some of them extremely long, plus 2 lateral spines on each side and 4-5 superior spines. The metatarsi I and II have 3 pairs of inferior spines and 2 lateral spines on each side in the basal half. [3]
Total length is 7-8 mm. [3]
Anyphops stridulans is listed as Data Deficient for taxonomic reasons, as the species is known only from the type locality and only from the male. [3] More sampling is needed to collect the female and determine the species' range. [3]
The species was originally described by Reginald Frederick Lawrence in 1940 as Selenops stridulans from Steinkopf. It was later transferred to the genus Anyphops by Corronca in 1996. [2]
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