Oxytate leruthi
| Leruthi's Oxytate Crab Spider | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Thomisidae |
| Genus: | Oxytate |
| Species: | O. leruthi
|
| Binomial name | |
| Oxytate leruthi (Lessert, 1943)[1]
| |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Oxytate leruthi is a spider in the family Thomisidae.[2] It is found in several African countries and is commonly known as Leruthi's Oxytate crab spider.[3]
Distribution
Oxytate leruthi is found in Ivory Coast, Ghana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, and South Africa.[2]
In South Africa, it is presently known from Gauteng, Mpumalanga, North West, and Western Cape provinces.[3]
Habitat and ecology
Oxytate leruthi are free-living tree dwellers that have been sampled from Grassland, Savanna, and Fynbos biomes at altitudes ranging from 85 to 1558 m.[3]
Description
The abdomen is long and narrow but does not extend past the spinnerets. The retrolateral tibial apophysis of the male is slender.[3]
Conservation
Oxytate leruthi is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide geographical range.[3] The species is recorded in the Swartberg Nature Reserve. Due to its wide range, no conservation actions are recommended and there are no significant threats.[3]
Taxonomy
Oxytate leruthi was originally described by Lessert in 1943 as Dieta leruthi from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[1] The species have been sampled from several countries in West, Central, and South Africa.[3] It has not been revised but is known from both sexes and is illustrated.[3]
References
- ^ a b Lessert, R. de (1943). "Araignées du Congo belge (Troisième partie)". Revue Suisse de Zoologie. 50 (3): 305–338.
- ^ a b "Oxytate leruthi (Lessert, 1943)". World Spider Catalog. Natural History Museum Bern. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2020). The Thomisidae of South Africa. Part 2 My-R. Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 21. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7513276. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.