Aneplasa facies
| Eastern Cape Aneplasa Ground Spider | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Gnaphosidae |
| Genus: | Aneplasa |
| Species: | A. facies
|
| Binomial name | |
| Aneplasa facies | |
Aneplasa facies is a species of spider in the family Gnaphosidae.[2] It is endemic to South Africa and is commonly known as the Eastern Cape Aneplasa ground spider.
Distribution
Aneplasa facies is distributed across two South African provinces: Eastern Cape and Western Cape. Notable localities include Grahamstown, Uitenhage, Asante Sana Private Game Reserve, and Swartberg Nature Reserve.[3]
Habitat and ecology
The species is a free-living ground dweller recorded from Thicket and Grassland biomes at altitudes ranging from 66 to 1,479 m above sea level.[3]
Description
Conservation
Aneplasa facies is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute. Despite males not being known, samples of females show that this species is widespread. The species is protected in Asante Sana Private Game Reserve and Swartberg Nature Reserve.[3]
Taxonomy
The species was originally described by R.W.E. Tucker in 1923 from Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape. It has not been revised since the original description and is known only from females. The species resembles Aneplasa balnearia.[3]
References
- ^ Tucker, R. W. E. (1923). "The Drassidae of South Africa". Annals of the South African Museum. 19 (2): 251–437.
- ^ "Aneplasa facies Tucker, 1923". World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
- ^ a b c d Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2021). The Gnaphosidae of South Africa. part 1 (A-D). South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 11. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7197174. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.