Biology:Charminus atomarius
| Umhlali Charminus nursery-web spider | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Pisauridae |
| Genus: | Charminus |
| Species: | C. atomarius
|
| Binomial name | |
| Charminus atomarius (Lawrence, 1942)[1]
| |
| Synonyms[2] | |
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Charminus atomarius is a species of spider in the family Pisauridae.[2] It is found in four African countries and is commonly known as the Umhlali Charminus nursery-web spider.[3]
Distribution
Charminus atomarius has been recorded from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mozambique, Tanzania and South Africa.[3]
In South Africa, it has been recorded from two provinces at altitudes ranging from 43 to 839 m.[3]
South African localities include Ndumo Game Reserve, Tembe Elephant Park, Pietermaritzburg, Umhlali, Ithala Nature Reserve and uMkhuze Game Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal, and Hoedspruit in Limpopo.[3]
Habitat and ecology
The species is found inhabiting grasses, herbs and low-growing shrubs, especially in shaded areas. They are active at night and are usually sampled with sweep nets from the Savanna biome.[3]
Description
The legs are pale and lightly banded. The abdomen has a dark pattern bordered by white, sometimes with a pair of white spots. The carapace has a median pale band bordered by two darker bands.[3]
Conservation
Charminus atomarius is listed as Least Concern due to its wide geographical range.[3] The species is protected in Ndumo Game Reserve, Tembe Elephant Park, Ithala Nature Reserve and uMkhuze Game Reserve.[3] There are no significant threats to the species.[3]
Taxonomy
The species was originally described by Lawrence in 1942 as Cispius atomarius from Umhlali in KwaZulu-Natal.[1] It was transferred to Charminus by Blandin in 1978, who also synonymized Cispius quadrimaculatus Roewer, 1955 with this species.[4] The species is known from both sexes and has been revised by Blandin (1978).[3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lawrence, R.F. (1942). "A contribution to the araneid fauna of Natal and Zululand". Annals of the Natal Museum 10: 141-190.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Charminus atomarius (Lawrence, 1942)". Natural History Museum Bern. World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2. https://wsc.nmbe.ch/species/27226. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
- ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2020). The Pisauridae of South Africa. Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 12. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7157775.
This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
- ↑ Blandin, P. (1978). "Etudes sur les Pisauridae africaines IX. Mise au point sur les genres Cispius Simon, 1898 et Charminus Thorell, 1899 (Araneae - Pisauridae - Pisaurinae)". Revue Zoologique Africaine 92 (1): 37-76.
Wikidata ☰ Q2697322 entry
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