Ocrepeira klamt

Ocrepeira klamt was delimited from other species of Ocrepeira through comparisons of genitalia morphological characteristics. Male (holotype). Approximately 5mm in length, the torso-exterior of the male (dorsal side) is khaki colored, with a taupe-colored head and a pattern that almost resembles the spider itself on the thoracic region. Chelicerae (appendages up near its mouth) are generally black near the body, fading to brown near their ends. Labium (mouth part) is taupe brown with a greenish rim. Turning the spider over to its ventral side, the sternum is also taupe brown fringe with a light greenish center. Its legs are patterned from darker brown through light brown with some greenish patches. The abdomen has a large hump that is patterned in grey with a robin egg-blue tint and a V-shaped brown central pattern, almost resembling that of a moth of butterfly. This orb-weaving spider has eight eyes in two transverse rows and the requisite 8 legs in a familiar 2 sets angled forward, 2 sets angled back on each side. Total length varies from 4.60 mm to 4.96 mm, carapace length from 2.75 mm to 3.18 mm (n = 3). Female (paratype). The female is slightly larger than the male (approx. 6mm torso) and has a chocolate brown exterior. Her mouth parts including the chelicerae are similar in color to that of her male counterpart (dark brown to black with some light brown patterning. …

Ocrepeira klamt are located in the Colombian páramos in the Tropical Andes. The Colombian páramos faces a neotropical grassland ecosystem between the timberline and snow fields. This area is located in Valle del Cauca Colombia, the Paramo Las Hermosas, La Nevera locality (03°31'54.8"N, 76°04'40.1"W) at an elevation of roughly 3650 meters above sea level.

The paramos, which is in a montane, per-humid Holdridge life zone, has a mean temperature of 7.4 °C year round and 2400 mm of total precipitation yearly. The neotropical grassland ecosystem is characterized by swamps and wet grasslands with patches of shrubs and forests. Although this ecosystem is highly diverse, it is dominated by tussock grasses, dwarf shrubs, and Espeletia. These areas are often referred to as 'grassland isles'. The paramos' play a key role in Colombia's hydrological system while also providing natural isolation and high biodiversity. There are a growing number of anthropogenic effects on these ecosystems and new conservation efforts should be considered. In addition, spider communities are known indicators of anthropogenic disturbance. The orb-weaving spiders Ocrepeira in the neotropical parámos are highly diverse and require protection. Paramo ecosystems are 'island-like' as they are typically isolated, which suggests that species living in these ecosystems have a generally small distribution range, which is similar to other Ocrepeira species. Aranae are typically predators, and we can assume O. klamt holds that same role however, future studies should be conducted to analyze O. klamt's trophic role. …

Future studies may demonstrate the potential for medicinal applications in silk from Ocrepeira klamt sp. n. Analysis of Ocrepeira klamt sp. n. silk proteins would be necessary to determine possible uses in biomedicine, as Charlotte Hopfe discussed.