Rhondes sarasini

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Rhondes sarasini
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Salticidae
Subfamily: Salticinae
Genus: Rhondes
Species:
R. sarasini
Binomial name
Rhondes sarasini
Patoleta, 2016

Rhondes sarasini is an endemic species of jumping spider in the genus Rhondes that lives in New Caledonia. First described in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta, only the female has yet to be identified. The holotype was discovered by Jean Roux and Karl Friedrich Sarasin in 1911, and the species name commemorates the latter. It is a small and slender spider, with a wide light brown cephalothorax that is typically 3.2 mm (0.13 in) long and a thinner abdomen, typically 5 mm (0.20 in) long, that has a pattern of light and dark patches. It differs from other members of the genus in its design of the epigyne, which has a wide pocket and short copulatory openings.

Contents

Taxonomy

Rhondes sarasini was first identified in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta. [1] The female holotype had been collected in 1911 by Jean Roux and Karl Friedrich Sarasin, and it is the latter that is commemorated in the species name. [2] The genus Rhondes was raised in 1901 by Eugène Simon for endemic species of jumping spiders in New Caledonia. [3] It has been placed in the tribe Viciriini in the clade Astioida. [4] Genetic analysis confirms that it is related to other species found only on the island, including members of the genus Penionomus , and not as closely related to members of the genus Heliophanus and others of the Chrysillini tribe, as was originally suggested. [5] [6] The fact that the species on the island are both closely related to each other and genetically distinct from those found off the island is used as evidence of the evolution taking place after the breakup of Gondwana. [7]

Description

The spider is one of five members of the genus described by Patoleta in 2016. [7] Only the female has been identified. [1] Small and slender, it has a shape that is typical of the genus, with a wide cephalothorax, thinner abdomen, very large chelicerae and very long endites. [6] The cephalothorax is light brown, with a covering of white scales, which measures 3.2 mm (0.13 in) long and 2.7 mm (0.11 in) wide. The abdomen is grey-brown and hairy with light and dark patches on top and grey-brown underneath. It typically measures 5 mm (0.20 in) long and 2.7 mm (0.11 in) wide. The clypeus is very narrow and light brown with long white hairs. The chelicerae, endites and pedipalps are similarly light brown. The front legs are dark brown, the remainder a lighter brown. The epigyne has short copulatory openings unlike Rhondes atypicus but a similarly shallow and wide pocket. [8] This distinguishes it from other species in the genus, such as Rhondes flexibilis , which has a wide pocket. [9]

Distribution and habitat

Rhondes sarasini has only been found in one location, in the forests of Vallie Ngoué towards the south end of Grande Terre, New Caledonia. [1] [10] Despite the existence of similar environments on other islands across the Pacific Ocean, it is endemic to the island and there is no evidence of the species in any other locale. [11]

Related Research Articles

Rhondes is a genus of New Caledonian jumping spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1901. It was briefly considered a synonym of Hasarius, but was revalidated after the results of a 2008 molecular study. It is now grouped with several other Australasian genera in the unranked clade Astioida.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aelurillus tumidulus</span> Species of spider

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<i>Aelurillus desertus</i> Species of spider

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<i>Langona bethae</i> Species of spider

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<i>Langona tortuosa</i> Species of spider

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<i>Yogetor spiralis</i> Species of spider

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<i>Plexippus minor</i> Species of spider

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Neaetha irreperta is a species of jumping spider in the genus Neaetha that lives in South Africa and Tanzania. First described in 2000 by Wanda Wesołowska & Anthony Russell-Smith, the spider is small, with a dark brown carapace that is between 1.2 and 1.4 mm long and a deep red-brown abdomen between 1.1 and 1.5 mm long. The abdomen has a pattern that is indistinct on the male, but a clearer set of grey lines and marks on the female, and this, along with the width of the abdomen, distinguishes the species from other in the genus. The male has a long embolus and the female's sclerotized epigyne has a central pocket and wide copulatory openings.

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<i>Stenaelurillus kavango</i> Species of spider

Stenaelurillus kavango is a species of jumping spider in the genus Stenaelurillus that lives in Namibia. It was first described in 2014 by Wanda Wesołowska from a holotype specimen found in the Kavango Region, after which it takes its name. Only the female has been identified. The spider is small, with a brown cephalothorax 2.8 mm (0.11 in) long and abdomen 3.1 mm (0.12 in) long. The carapace is hairy, dark brown and has four white streaks, while the abdomen is brown-black with light stripes. It can distinguished from other members of the genus by the design of the epigyne, which is oval, and its bean-shaped spermathecae.

<i>Phintella caledoniensis</i> Species of spider

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Rhondes atypicus is an endemic species of jumping spider in the genus Rhondes that lives in New Caledonia. First described in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta, the species has been found on both Grande Terre and Isle of Pines, living in rainforests. It is small and slender, with a wide brown hairy cephalothorax and thinner abdomen. The abdominal markings differ between the male and female, which gives rise to the species name. The male light and dark patches on its abdomen, and has a longer and thicker embolus than other species in the genus. The female, which is larger, has a striped abdominal pattern, which distinguishes the species from the similar Rhondes flexibilis.

Rhondes berlandi is an endemic species of jumping spider in the genus Rhondes that lives in New Caledonia. First described in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta, the species has been found on both Grande Terre and Isle of Pines, living in rainforests. Only the female has yet to be described. It is small and slender, with a wide brown hairy cephalothorax and thinner abdomen that is patterned with light and dark patches. The species can be distinguished from the related Rhondes flexibilis by its wide epigynal pocket.

Rhondes flexibilis is an endemic species of jumping spider in the genus Rhondes that lives in New Caledonia. First described in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta, the species is common across the island, living in rainforests. It is small and slender, with a wide brown hairy cephalothorax and thinner abdomen that has a pattern of light and dark patches. The male, which is slightly larger, has a variably-shaped sclerite on the palpal bulb, after which the species is named. The female has a slightly less distinctive abdominal pattern and an epigyne with a relatively long and narrow pocket.

Rhondes zofiae is an endemic species of jumping spider in the genus Rhondes that lives in New Caledonia. Only the female has been described. First defined in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta, the species is unusually named after her mother. It is small and slender, with a wide light brown cephalothorax and thinner abdomen that is lighter and patterned with grey-brown patches. It can be distinguished from the related Rhondes atypicus by the position of its copulatory openings.

Neaetha wesolowskae is a species of jumping spider in the genus Neaetha that is endemic to Thailand. First described in 2020 by Barbara Patoleta & Marek Żabka, the spider is small with a brown carapace that between 0.86 and 1.49 mm in length and a abdomen that is between 0.97 and 1.2 mm long. The female is smaller than the male, and has a pattern of spots rather than lines on the abdomen. The male has a crescent-shaped embolus, which separates it from other species like Neaetha absheronica, Neaetha membrosa and Neaetha tomkovichi. The female is hard to tell from other members of the genus, but the epigyne has distinguishing ovoid, rather than crescent-shaped copulatory openings and spermathecae that are separated rather than lying together.

Bacelarella pavida is a species of jumping spider in the genus Bacelarella that is endemic to Ivory Coast. It was first described in 2001 by Tamás Szűts and Rudy Jocqué based on a holotype found near Appouasso. The spider is medium-sized with a dark brown carapace that has a length between 3.7 and 4.0 mm and a mottled abdomen that is between 3 and 4.5 mm long. The carapace has a yellow spot and the abdomen has a pattern of white bands and spots. The male differs from other spiders in the genus in having a short embolus. The female can be distinguished by the large plate on the epigyne and large flaps on the chamber at the entrance to the short copulatory ducts.

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 World Spider Catalog (2021). "Rhondes sarasini Patoleta, 2016". World Spider Catalog. 22.5. Bern: Natural History Museum. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
  2. Patoleta 2016, p. 30.
  3. Simon 1901, p. 548.
  4. Maddison 2015, p. 277.
  5. Maddison, Bodner & Needham 2008, p. 54.
  6. 1 2 Patoleta 2016, p. 17.
  7. 1 2 Patoleta 2016, p. 15.
  8. Patoleta 2016, p. 31.
  9. Patoleta 2016, p. 27.
  10. Patoleta 2016, pp. 27, 30.
  11. Patoleta 2016, p. 18.

Bibliography