Themacrys
| Themacrys | |
|---|---|
| |
| female T. irrorata | |
| |
| female T. irrorata | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Phyxelididae |
| Genus: | Themacrys Simon, 1906[1] |
| Type species | |
| T. irrorata Simon, 1906
| |
| Species | |
|
5, see text | |
Themacrys is a genus of South African araneomorph spiders in the family Phyxelididae, and was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1906.[2]
Description
Themacrys are small to large spiders with total lengths ranging from 4.5 to 16 mm. The body is sparsely setose. The carapace is wider than long, with a thoracic fovea that is long, deep and narrow, or broader and narrowed posteriorly. The eyes are arranged in two rows.[3]
The promargin of the fang furrow has 5 or 6 teeth, while the retromargin has 6-8 heterogeneous teeth. The sternum is long with a base that is weakly to moderately narrowed. The legs are short to elongate with leg formula 1423 or 4123. Apical metatarsal combs are absent, and leg markings are usually uniform. The metatarsus has a clasping spine situated on a retrolateral process and stout denticles. The palpal femur usually has a triangular patch of thorns or linear arrangement.[3]
The abdomen usually displays a dorsal, central longitudinal light band and crossbars, rarely uniform, while the ventral bands are bold and clear.[3]
Species
As of September 2025 it contains five species, found only in South Africa:[1]
- Themacrys cavernicola (Lawrence, 1939) (also found in Lesotho)
- Themacrys irrorata Simon, 1906 (type)
- Themacrys monticola (Lawrence, 1939)
- Themacrys silvicola (Lawrence, 1938)
- Themacrys ukhahlamba Griswold, 1990
References
- ^ a b "Gen. Themacrys Simon, 1906". World Spider Catalog Version 20.0. Natural History Museum Bern. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2025-09-24.
- ^ Simon, E. (1906). "Etude sur les araignées de la section des cribellates". Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique. 50: 284–308. doi:10.5962/bhl.part.19947.
- ^ a b c Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2021). The Phyxelididae of South Africa. Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. pp. 30–31. doi:10.5281/zenodo.6813843. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.
External links