Euprosthenops proximus
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Tanzania Euprosthenops Nursery-Web Spider | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Pisauridae |
| Genus: | Euprosthenops |
| Species: | E. proximus |
| Binomial name | |
| Euprosthenops proximus | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| |
Euprosthenops proximus is a species of spider in the family Pisauridae.[2] It is found across several African countries and is commonly known as the Tanzania Euprosthenops nursery-web spider.[3]
Euprosthenops proximus has a wide distribution across Africa. It is found in Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ivory Coast, Rwanda, Tanzania, and South Africa.[3] In South Africa, it has been recorded from four provinces at altitudes ranging from 51 to 1,251 m above sea level.[3]
Habitat and ecology
Funnel-web pisaurids construct their webs in short shrubs and bushes close to the ground or in trees. Large webs are made in vegetation with a funnel at the bottom. The capture web is sheet-like and composed of dense criss-crossing threads. The species has been sampled from the Grassland and Savanna biomes.[3]
A study of spiders inhabiting abandoned mammal burrows at Nylsvley in South Africa found that Euprosthenops proximus builds a web over those of other spider species, attaching it to grass surrounding the burrow. The web is hammock-shaped and the spider sits in the middle waiting for prey. When disturbed, the spider runs over the web and escapes into the burrow.[3]
