Rhomphaea affinis

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Mozambique's Tailed Comb-foot Spider
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Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Theridiidae
Genus: Rhomphaea
Species:
R. affinis
Binomial name
Rhomphaea affinis
Lessert, 1936 [1]

Rhomphaea affinis is a species of spider in the family Theridiidae. [2] It is a southern African endemic commonly known as Mozambique's tailed comb-foot spider. [3]

Contents

Distribution

Rhomphaea affinis is known from Mozambique and South Africa. [2]

In South Africa, the species has been sampled from two Free State Province and KwaZulu-Natal. Locations include Sandveld Nature Reserve, Ndumo Game Reserve, Pietermaritzburg, Ithala Nature Reserve, Vernon Crookes Nature Reserve, and Kosi Bay Coastal Forest. [3]

Habitat and ecology

Rhomphaea affinis has been sampled from the Savanna biome at altitudes ranging from 47 to 1,325 m. [3]

Description

Only the female is known. Females measure 4 to 5 mm in length. The species has an elongate, flattened, brownish carapace with pale yellow to brown legs. The abdomen is elongated and triangular with a tip above the spinnerets, mottled white with silver spots. [3]

Conservation

Rhomphaea affinis is listed as Least Concern due to its wide geographical range. The species is protected in Ndumo Game Reserve, Ithala Nature Reserve, Sandveld Nature Reserve, and Vernon Crookes Nature Reserve. [3]

Taxonomy

Rhomphaea affinis was described by Lessert in 1936 from Mozambique. [1] The species was transferred from Argyrodes to Rhomphaea by Agnarsson in 2004. [4] The species has not been revised and is known only from the female. [3]

References

  1. 1 2 Lessert, R. de (1936). "Araignées de l'Afrique orientale portugaise, recueillies par MM. P. Lesne et B.-B. Cott". Revue Suisse de Zoologie. 43: 207–306. doi:10.5962/bhl.part.144393.
  2. 1 2 "Rhomphaea affinis Lessert, 1936". World Spider Catalog. Natural History Museum Bern. doi:10.24436/2 . Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2021). The Theridiidae of South Africa. Part 2 [R-T]. Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 4. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7515998. Creative Commons by small.svg  This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
  4. Agnarsson, I. (2004). "Morphological phylogeny of cobweb spiders and their relatives (Araneae, Araneoidea, Theridiidae)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 141 (4): 447–626. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2004.00120.x.