Schizocosa darlingi

Schizocosa darlingi is a species of spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in southern Africa and is commonly known as the Zimbabwe Schizosa wolf spider.

Distribution

Schizocosa darlingi is found in Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.
In South Africa, it is recorded from KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo. Notable locations include Hluhluwe Nature Reserve and Estcourt in KwaZulu-Natal, and Rust de Winter in Limpopo.

Habitat and ecology

Schizocosa darlingi is a free-running ground dweller. The species inhabits the Grassland and Savanna biomes at altitudes ranging from 119 to 1189 m. It has also been sampled from cotton fields.

Conservation

Schizocosa darlingi is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide geographical range.

Taxonomy

Schizocosa darlingi was originally described by Pocock in 1898 as Lycosa darlingii from Zimbabwe. The species has been reviewed by Roewer and is known from both sexes.