Singa (spider)


Singa, also called striped orb-weavers, is a genus of orb-weaver spiders first described by C. L. Koch in 1836. They are small for orb-weavers, reaching or less in body length, excluding the legs.

Distribution

Of the about thirty species, the majority is found in Eurasia from Norway to the Philippines. Three species live in southern Africa, and three in North America. S. Lucina can be found in North Africa.

Description

Females and males range from 3–6 mm in total length, with males slightly smaller than females. The colour varies from cream to brown to greyish-black with a uniformly dark carapace. The carapace is longer than wide with eight eyes in two rows. The anterior median eyes are largest, and the median ocular quadrangle is wider in front than behind. The abdomen is decorated with longitudinal stripes, oval-shaped, longer than wide, and overhangs the carapace. The legs are moderately long and kept close to the body when at rest.

Lifestyle

Very little is known about their behaviour. The small orb webs are made in low-growing vegetation, herbs or grasses.

Species

, this genus includes 25 species and one subspecies:Singa albobivittata Caporiacco, 1947 – TanzaniaSinga albodorsata Kauri, 1950 – South Africa, Lesotho, EswatiniSinga alpigena Yin, Wang & Li, 1983 – ChinaSinga alpigenoides Song & Zhu, 1992 – ChinaSinga ammophila Levy, 2007 – IsraelSinga bifasciata Schenkel, 1936 – ChinaSinga chota Tikader, 1970 – IndiaSinga concinna Karsch, 1884 – São Tomé and PríncipeSinga cruciformis Yin, Peng & Wang, 1994 – ChinaSinga cyanea – United StatesSinga eugeni Levi, 1972 – Canada, United StatesSinga haddooensis Tikader, 1977 – India Singa hamata – Europe, Turkey, Russia, Caucasus, Central Asia, China, Korea, Japan Singa hilira Barrion & Litsinger, 1995 – PhilippinesSinga kansuensis Schenkel, 1936 – ChinaSinga keyserlingi McCook, 1894 – Canada, United StatesSinga lawrencei – DR Congo, Uganda, South AfricaSinga leucoplagiata – Indonesia Singa lucina – Mediterranean, Central Asia