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Neaetha catula
Neaetha catula is a species of jumping spider in the genus Neaetha that lives in East and Southern Africa. The male was first described in 1886 by Eugène Simon and the female by Ludovico di Caporiacco in 1949. First discovered in Zanzibar, examples have also been identified in Kenya. The spider is small, 3 mm (0.12 in) long, with a generally black cephalothorax and abdomen, although the abdomen has a pattern of spots towards the rear and a thin line that divides it in two. The species can be distinguished from others in the genus by the lack of central pocket in the female's epigyne. This feature led Dmitri Logunov to consider whether the spider belongs to the genus.
From the article Neaetha catula on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Description
The spider is short, measuring 3 mm (0.12 in) in length. It has a black cephalothorax that is thinner in the middle. The cephalon is yellow and covered in scales. Scales can also be found at the edges of the carapace, particularly around the thorax. A central line crosses the carapace, and another crosses the abdomen, dividing it into a plain black area towards the front and a more rearward area that has a pattern of spots. The chelicerae are also black. The legs are more colourful, although also mainly black. The pedipalps are yellow. The male has a bulbous palpal bulb and a long embolus. The females of the genus are generally hard to distinguish. In this species, the female has an epigyne that does not have the central pocket that is common to other members of the genus, which has led to doubts about whether it belongs to the genus.
Range & habitat
The spider was first observed in Zanzibar. It was subsequently also found near Mackinnon Road, Kenya. The species distribution extends to East and Southern Africa.
Wikipedia: “Distribution and habitat”
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
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In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Neaetha catula in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 677154.