Argiope tapinolobata

Argiope tapinolobata is a species of spider in the family Araneidae, found from Senegal to South Africa. It is commonly known as the long-bodied garden orb-web spider.

Distribution

Argiope tapinolobata is known from Senegal, Namibia, and South Africa. In South Africa, the species is recorded from a single locality in Gauteng.

Habitat and ecology

The species is characterized by a female abdomen that is almost cylindrical, over twice as long as wide, with very shallow lobes. The South African specimen was sampled from grassland in mid-January.

Description

The female of A. tapinolobata has a distinctive abdomen that is almost cylindrical and over twice as long as wide, with very shallow lobes. This distinguishes it from other Argiope species which typically have more rounded abdomens.

Conservation

Argiope tapinolobata is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide geographical range across Africa. The species is possibly under-sampled in southern Africa.

Taxonomy

The species was described by Bjørn in 1997 from Senegal. It is possibly under-collected and suspected to occur in countries between its known distribution points. Only the female is known.