Monaeses paradoxus
| Spotted Monaeses Crab Spider | |
|---|---|
| female | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Thomisidae |
| Genus: | Monaeses |
| Species: | M. paradoxus
|
| Binomial name | |
| Monaeses paradoxus | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Monaeses paradoxus is a species of spider in the family Thomisidae.[2] It has a very wide distribution and is commonly known as the spotted Monaeses crab spider.[3]
Distribution
Monaeses paradoxus is found from Southern Europe to Iran, and throughout Africa.[2]
In South Africa, the species occurs in all nine provinces.[3] Notable locations include Kruger National Park, Tsitsikamma National Park, Pilanesberg National Park, and Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve.[3]
Habitat and ecology
Monaeses paradoxus inhabits grass and low vegetation and is easily collected with a sweepnet.[3]
The species is abundant in Fynbos, Forest, Indian Ocean Coastal Belt, Nama Karoo, Succulent Karoo, Grassland and Savanna biomes at altitudes ranging from 1 to 1,871 m.[3]
The species has also been sampled from cotton and pistachio orchards.[3]
Adults have been collected throughout the year, except during winter months.[3]
Description
Conservation
Monaeses paradoxus is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide global range.[3] The species is protected in more than 19 reserves.[3]
Taxonomy
Monaeses paradoxus was originally described as Monastes paradoxus by Hippolyte Lucas in 1846 from Algeria.[1] The species was revised by Dippenaar-Schoeman in 1984, who synonymized Monaeses nigeriensis and M. paradoxus albidus with this species.[4]
References
- ^ a b Lucas, H. (1846). Histoire naturelle des animaux articulés. In: Exploration scientifique de l'Algérie pendant les années 1840, 1841, 1842. Vol. 1. Paris, Sciences physiques, Zoologie. pp. 89–271. doi:10.5962/bhl.title.112444.
- ^ a b "Monaeses paradoxus (Lucas, 1846)". World Spider Catalog. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2020). The Thomisidae of South Africa. Part 1 A-Mo. Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 59. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7513274. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
- ^ Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S. (1984). "The crab-spiders of southern Africa (Araneae: Thomisidae). 4. The genus Monaeses Thorell, 1869". Phytophylactica. 16: 101–116.