Pseudicius femineus
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| Pseudicius femineus | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Salticidae |
| Genus: | Pseudicius |
| Species: | P. femineus |
| Binomial name | |
| Pseudicius femineus Wesołowska & Haddad, 2013 | |
Pseudicius femineus is a species of jumping spider in the genus Pseudicius that is endemic to South Africa. The spider was first defined in 2013 by Wanda Wesołowska and Charles Haddad. It has a genus name that is derived from two Greek words meaning false and honest and a species name that is a Latin word for womanly. The spider is small, with a cephalothorax typically 2.1 mm (0.083 in) long and an abdomen typically 3.4 mm (0.13 in) long. The female has a pattern of eight patches on its abdomen. It is most easily distinguished from other species in the genus by its epigyne, which has a deep depression to the rear and has gonopores to the side of a pocket in the middle. Internally, the single chambered spermathecae is reached by short insemination ducts. The male has not been described.

Pseudicius femineus is a jumping spider that was first described by the Polish arachnologist Wanda Wesołowska and Charles Haddad in 2013.[1] They allocated the species to the genus Pseudicius, first raised by Eugène Simon in 1885.[2] The genus name is related to two Greek words that can be translated false and honest.[3] The genus was provisionally placed alongside Icius that, despite looking superficially similar, has a different etymology.[4][5] Indeed, Ekaterina Andreeva, Stefania Hęciak and Jerzy Prószyński looked to combine the genera in 1984.[6] The two genera have similar spermathecal structure but work by Wayne Maddison in 1987 demonstrated that they have very different DNA.[5] The two genera were placed in the tribe Heliophaninae alongside Afraflacilla and Marchena.[7] Maddison renamed the tribe Chrysillini in 2015.[8] The tribe is a member of the clade Saltafresia within the subfamily Salticoida.[9] A year later, in 2016, Jerzy Prószyński allocated the genus to the Pseudiciines group of genera, which was named after the genus.[10] Marchena is a member of the group, while Icius is not. They have a flattened and elongated body and characteristic colour patterns.[11] The species is named for a Latin word meaning womenly.[12]