Theridion purcelli
Theridion purcelli is a species of spider in the family Theridiidae. It is found in Saint Helena, Namibia, and South Africa, and is commonly known as Purcell's Theridion comb-feet spider.
Distribution
Theridion purcelli is found in Saint Helena, Namibia, and South Africa. In South Africa it is known from all provinces.
Habitat and ecology
This species builds a conical retreat of twigs and leaves in its three-dimensional labyrinth web.
It has been sampled from all the floral biomes except the Indian Ocean Coastal Belt Forest and Succulent Karoo biomes at altitudes ranging from 5 to 1809 m. The species is also commonly found in crops including citrus, cotton, macadamia, maize, strawberries, sunflowers and tomatoes. It is also synantropic and found in and around houses.
Description
The abdomen is subglobular and furnished with bristly setae. The colour is dull yellowish with a longitudinal central sharply dentated band, obtuse anteriorly and tapering towards the spinnerets. The band is marked with pale spots. Ventrally the abdomen is black-brown with a central white patch. The female resembles the male.
Conservation
Theridion purcelli is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its large geographical range. The species is protected in six reserves.
Etymology
The species is named after William Frederick Purcell, a South African naturalist and museum curator who made significant contributions to the study of southern African arachnids.
Taxonomy
Theridion purcelli was described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1904 from Salt River in the Western Cape. The species has not been revised and is known from both sexes.