Pherecydes (spider)

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Pherecydes
Pherecydes tuberculatus04.jpg
Pherecydes tuberculatus
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Thomisidae
Genus: Pherecydes
O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1883 [1]
Type species
P. tuberculatus O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1883
Species

7, see text

Pherecydes is a genus of African crab spiders first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1883. [2]

Contents

Description

Members of Pherecydes are small spiders measuring 3 to 5 mm. [3]

Colour varies between species with the carapace ranging from yellowish-brown mottled with dark brown to whitish-grey mottled with black, the abdomen from cream faintly mottled with brown to grey faintly mottled with black, and the legs from cream to fawn mottled with black and brown. [3]

Legs I and II have numerous dark brown and yellow patches on the femora and patellae dorsally, while the tibiae and metatarsi are lightly banded. [3]

The genus is recognised by the two lateral eyes situated on a common elevated area that is widely truncated on top, though this varies between species. [3]

Life style

These spiders have been sampled from trees and shrubs. [3]

Species

As of October 2025, this genus includes seven species and one subspecies: [1]

References

  1. 1 2 "Gen. Pherecydes O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1883". World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2 . Retrieved 2025-10-07.
  2. Pickard-Cambridge, O. (1883). "On some new genera and species of spiders". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 51 (3): 352–365. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.1883.tb06654.x.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2020). The Thomisidae of South Africa. Part 2 My-R. Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 35. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7513276. Creative Commons by small.svg  This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.