Kingdom Animalia Class Arachnida Family Salticidae | Phylum Arthropoda Order Araneae | |
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Subfamily Salticinae
Blackwall, 1841 | ||
Salticus is a spider genus of the Salticidae family (jumping spiders).
Contents
Description
Salticus species are typically marked with a black and white pattern, with some featuring transverse stripes, often gaining them the popular name "zebra spiders". Mature males have very long chelicerae on which they rest their long, thin pedipalps. Females are from 3.5 to 7 mm long, males up to 5 mm.
Habits
Salticus are often found on rocks and tree trunks, where the sun can reach. S. scenicus is often seen on sunny walls.
Distribution
This genus was used for a long time as a salticid dump, with many species originally described as Salticus now moved to other genera. The remaining species have mostly a palearctic distribution, with some species reaching into the Mediterranean region and South Asia. A few species are found in the New World. S. perogaster is endemic to a small island in New Guinea, S. annulatus is found in South Africa.
Salticus melanopus, the single described species from southeast Asia (Thailand), is a nomen dubium.