Olios biarmatus

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Umbilo Olios Huntsman Spider
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Sparassidae
Genus: Olios
Species:
O. biarmatus
Binomial name
Olios biarmatus
Lessert, 1925 [1]

Olios biarmatus is a species of spider in the family Sparassidae. [2] It is endemic to South Africa and is commonly known as the Umbilo Olios huntsman spider. [3]

Contents

Distribution

Olios biarmatus is recorded from two provinces in South Africa: Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. The species has been collected at altitudes ranging from 5 to 1,345 m above sea level. [3]

Habitat and ecology

The species consists of nocturnal plant dwellers that wander around in search of prey on vegetation. Olios biarmatus has been sampled from the Indian Ocean Coastal Belt, Forest and Savanna biomes. [3]

Description

Conservation

Olios biarmatus is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide geographical range within South Africa. The species is protected in five protected areas including Mkambati Nature Reserve, Hluhluwe Nature Reserve, St. Lucia Nature Reserve, Vernon Crookes Nature Reserve and Enseleni Game Reserve. [3]

Taxonomy

Olios biarmatus was described by Lessert in 1925 from Umbilo in KwaZulu-Natal. According to Jäger (2020), this species is misplaced in Olios and may require generic reassignment in future taxonomic work. [4]

References

  1. ↑ Lessert, R. de (1925). "Araignées du sud de l'Afrique (suite)". Revue Suisse de Zoologie. 32: 323–365. doi:10.5962/bhl.part.117932.
  2. ↑ "Olios biarmatus Lessert, 1925". World Spider Catalog. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2022). The Sparassidae of South Africa. Version 2. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 15. doi:10.5281/zenodo.6614498. Creative Commons by small.svg  This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
  4. ↑ Jäger, P. (2020). "The spider genus Olios Walckenaer, 1837 (Araneae: Sparassidae) – Part 1: species groups, diagnoses, identification keys, distribution maps and revision of the argelasius-, coenobitus- and auricomis-groups". Zootaxa. 4866 (1): 1–119. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4866.1.1.
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