Selenops radiatus

Common Selenops Flat Spider
A room mate in Mbinga, Tanzania
Conservation status
Least Concern  (SANBI Red List)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Order:	Araneae
Infraorder:	Araneomorphae
Family:	Selenopidae
Genus:	Selenops
Species:	S. radiatus
Binomial name
Selenops radiatus Latreille, 1819 [1]
Synonyms
Selenops omalosomaDufour, 1820 Selenops aegyptiacaAudouin, 1826 Selenops annulipesWalckenaer, 1837 Selenops peregrinatorWalckenaer, 1837 Selenops alacerBlackwall, 1865 Selenops sansibaricusGerstaecker, 1873 Selenops latreilleiSimon, 1875 Selenops malabarensisSimon, 1880 Selenops birmanicusThorell, 1895 Selenops diversusO. Pickard-Cambridge, 1898 Selenops strandiCaporiacco, 1941 Selenops sumitraePatel & Patel, 1973 Selenops cordatusZhu, Sha & Chen, 1990

Selenops radiatus is a species of spider in the family Selenopidae. ^[2] It has a cosmopolitan distribution found in the Mediterranean, Africa, Middle East, India, Myanmar and China and is commonly known as the Common Selenops flat spider. ^[3]

Distribution

Selenops radiatus is a cosmopolitan species with a very wide global distribution. ^[3]

Habitat and ecology

The species is a free-living cryptozoic nocturnal spider that is commonly found in houses and outbuildings as well as in a wide range of other habitats. It inhabits Grassland, Savanna and Thicket biomes. The species may play a role in regulating populations of potato tuber moths, cockroaches and silver-fish. ^[3]

Description

See also: Glossary of spider terms

A species known from both sexes. Carapace brown with dark striae radiating forwards and sideways from fovea. abdomen above with dark median area and dark mottled brown on sides, a few white speckles among the predominating brown ones. Legs grey with femora paler and all legs with distinct white bands. ^[3]

Conservation

Selenops radiatus is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide global geographical range. In South Africa, the species is protected in five reserves: Platberg Nature Reserve, Roodeplaatdam Nature Reserve, Tswaing Crater Nature Reserve, Sabie Sabie Reserve and Kruger National Park. ^[3]

Taxonomy

S. radiatus was originally described by Latreille in 1819. It has numerous synonyms reflecting its wide distribution and historical taxonomic confusion. The species has been extensively revised by multiple authors over time. ^[3]

Subspecies

These two subspecies belong to the species Selenops radiatus:

• Selenops radiatus fuscusFranganillo, 1926
• Selenops radiatus radiatusLatreille, 1819

References

1. Latreille, P.A. (1819). Nouveau dictionnaire d'histoire naturelle, appliquée aux arts, à l'agriculture, à l'économie rurale et domestique, à la médecine, etc. Vol. 30. p. 580.
2. "Selenops radiatus Latreille, 1819". World Spider Catalog. Retrieved 2025-09-27.
3. Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2020). The Selenopidae of South Africa. Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 76. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7162139.  This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.

Further reading

• Crews, S. (2011). "A revision of the spider genus Selenops (Arachnida, Araneae, Selenopidae) in North America, Central America and the Caribbean". ZooKeys (105): 1–182. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.105.724 . PMC   3131050 . PMID   21852919.