Tyrotama bicava
| Tyrotama bicava | |
|---|---|
| Female | |
| Female | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Hersiliidae |
| Genus: | Tyrotama |
| Species: | T. bicava
|
| Binomial name | |
| Tyrotama bicava (Smithers, 1945)[1]
| |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Tyrotama bicava is a species of spider in the family Hersiliidae.[2] It is a southern African endemic.[3]
Distribution
Tyrotama bicava occurs in Angola, Namibia, and South Africa.[2] In South Africa, the species is known only from one locality in Marble Hall, Limpopo, at an altitude of 895 m above sea level.[3]
Habitat
The species occurs in Savanna biomes and constructs circular webs under stones. The web is attached to the stone's underside and hangs like a veil, with the entrance positioned on the northern side.[3]
Description
Tyrotama bicava is known from both sexes. Like other members of the genus Tyrotama, it exhibits the characteristic shorter legs compared to Hersilia species.[3]
Conservation
Tyrotama bicava is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide distribution range across multiple African countries, despite its limited known occurrence in South Africa. No significant threats have been identified.[3]
Taxonomy
The species was originally described by Smithers in 1945 as Tama bicava from Namibia. Foord & Dippenaar-Schoeman (2005) transferred it to the genus Tyrotama.[4]
References
- ^ Smithers, R.H.N. (1945). "The Hersiliidae (Araneae) of South Africa". Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa. 31: 1–18.
- ^ a b "Tyrotama bicava (Smithers, 1945)". World Spider Catalog. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
- ^ a b c d e Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2020). The Hersiliidae of South Africa. Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 18. doi:10.5281/zenodo.5913607. Retrieved 21 September 2025. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
- ^ Foord, S.H.; Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S. (2005). "A revision of the Afrotropical species of Hersiliola Thorell and Tama Simon with the description of a new genus Tyrotama (Araneae: Hersiliidae)". African Entomology. 13: 255–279.