Rhondes flexibilis
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| Rhondes flexibilis | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Salticidae |
| Subfamily: | Salticinae |
| Genus: | Rhondes |
| Species: | R. flexibilis |
| Binomial name | |
| Rhondes flexibilis Patoleta, 2016 | |
Rhondes flexibilis is an endemic species of jumping spider in the genus Rhondes that lives in New Caledonia. First described in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta, the species is common across the island, living in rainforests. It is small and slender, with a wide brown hairy cephalothorax and thinner abdomen that has a pattern of light and dark patches. The male, which is slightly larger, has a variably-shaped sclerite on the palpal bulb, after which the species is named. The female has a slightly less distinctive abdominal pattern and an epigyne with a relatively long and narrow pocket.
Rhondes flexibilis was first identified in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta.[1] The species was named after shape of the sclerite on the palpal bulb, which is quite variable.[2] The genus Rhondes was raised in 1901 by Eugène Simon for endemic species of jumping spiders in New Caledonia.[3] It has been placed in the tribe Viciriini in the clade Astioida.[4] Genetic analysis confirms that it is related to other species found only on the island, including Trite ignipilosa, and not as closely related to the genus Heliophanus, and other members of the Chrysillini tribe, as was originally suggested.[5][6] The fact that the species on the island are both closely related to each other and genetically distinct from those found off the island is used as evidence of the evolution taking place after the breakup of Gondwana.[7]