Zelotes frenchi
| French Dark Ground Spider | |
|---|---|
| Female | |
| Female | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Gnaphosidae |
| Genus: | Zelotes |
| Species: | Z. frenchi
|
| Binomial name | |
| Zelotes frenchi Tucker, 1923[1]
| |
Zelotes frenchi is a species of spider in the family Gnaphosidae.[2] It is commonly known as the French dark ground spider.[3]
Distribution
Zelotes frenchi is a southern African spider distributed across Botswana, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.[2] In South Africa, it has been recorded from eight provinces, at altitudes ranging from 58 to 1,762 m above sea level.[3]
Habitat and ecology
The species inhabits the Fynbos, Grassland, and Savanna biomes. These are free-running ground spiders.[3]
Description
-
female
-
female
-
female
Conservation
Zelotes frenchi is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide geographic range. There are no significant threats to the species and it is protected in more than 10 protected areas.[3]
Taxonomy
The species was originally described by Tucker in 1923 from Zimbabwe. It was revised by FitzPatrick in 2007. The species is known from both sexes.[3]
References
- ^ Tucker, R.W.E. (1923). "The Drassidae of South Africa". Annals of the South African Museum. 19 (2): 251–437, pl. 8-11.
- ^ a b "Zelotes frenchi Tucker, 1923". World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2025-09-25.
- ^ a b c d e Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2021). The Gnaphosidae of South Africa. Part 4 (Z). Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. pp. 17–18. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7197783. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.