Rhondes zofiae
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| Rhondes zofiae | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Salticidae |
| Subfamily: | Salticinae |
| Genus: | Rhondes |
| Species: | R. zofiae |
| Binomial name | |
| Rhondes zofiae Patoleta, 2016 | |
Rhondes zofiae is an endemic species of jumping spider in the genus Rhondes that lives in New Caledonia. Only the female has been described. First defined in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta, the species is unusually named after her mother. It is small and slender, with a wide light brown cephalothorax and thinner abdomen that is lighter and patterned with grey-brown patches. It can be distinguished from the related Rhondes atypicus by the position of its copulatory openings.
Rhondes zofiae was first identified in 2016 by Barbara Patoleta.[1] The species was named after Patoleta's mother, Zofia Jendrzejewska.[2] This is unusual, as naming species after members of a scientist's family is uncommon, and, when species are named after people, male choices far outnumber female names.[3] The genus Rhondes was raised in 1901 by Eugène Simon for endemic species of jumping spiders in New Caledonia.[4] It has been placed in the tribe Viciriini in the clade Astioida.[5] Genetic analysis confirms that it is related to other species found only on the island, including members of the genus Penionomus, and not as closely related to members of the genus Heliophanus, and others of the Chrysillini tribe, as was originally suggested.[6][7] 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.[8]