''Phintella caledoniensis'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of jumping spider in the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

'' Phintella'' that lives in New Caledonia. First described in 2009 by Barbara Patoleta, it was named after the island where it was found. The spider is small and has a brown

cephalothorax The cephalothorax, also called prosoma in some groups, is a tagma of various arthropods, comprising the head and the thorax fused together, as distinct from the abdomen behind. (The terms ''prosoma'' and ''opisthosoma'' are equivalent to ''cepha ...

with patches, the female being generally darker, and a grey or grey-brown

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...

. The female has distinctive bean-shaped

spermatheca The spermatheca (pronounced plural: spermathecae ), also called receptaculum seminis (plural: receptacula seminis), is an organ of the female reproductive tract in insects, e.g. ants, bees, some molluscs, oligochaeta worms and certain other ...

and the male a long and thin embolus.

Taxonomy

''Phintella lajuma'' was first identified in 2009 by Barbara Patoleta. The

is named after the island where it was first found. The

''Phintella'' was raised in 1906 by Embrik Strand and W. Bösenberg. The genus name derives from the genus ''Phintia'', which it resembles. The genus ''Phintia'' was itself renamed ''Phintodes'', which was subsequently absorbed into '' Tylogonus''. There are similarities between spiders within genus ''Phintella'' and those in '' Chira'', '' Chrysilla'', '' Euophrys'', '' Icius'', ''

Jotus ''Jotus'' is a spider genus of the family Salticidae (jumping spiders), native to Australia, New Zealand, and Indonesia. There are thought to be many as yet undescribed species in southern Australia. Species , the World Spider Catalog accepted t ...

'' and '' Telamonia''. Genetic analysis confirms that it is related to the genera '' Helvetia'' and ''

Menemerus ''Menemerus'' is a genus of jumping spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1868. They are long, flattened in shape, and very hairy, usually with brown and grayish hairs. Most species have white edges on the thorax. The abdome ...

'' and is classified in the

tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English language, English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in p ...

'' Chrysillini''.

Description

The spider is medium-sized, with shape that is typical of the genus, with a broad

with flat sides that is wider than the

. It is most similar to '' Phintella volupe'', found in Sri Lanka, but can be distinguished by its copulatory organs. The female of the species has a dark brown cephalothorax, with white patches. It has a grey oval abdomen and

spinnerets A spinneret is a silk-spinning organ of a spider or the larva of an insect. Some adult insects also have spinnerets, such as those borne on the forelegs of Embioptera. Spinnerets are usually on the underside of a spider's opisthosoma, and are ...

that are also grey. The clypeus and chelicerae are brown. The spider is small, with a abdomen that is long and wide while the cephalothorax is in length and across. The female has a distinctive bean-shaped

e. The male is slightly lighter in colour and larger than the female, and the male's abdomen and spinnerets are grey-brown. The abdomen is long and wide and the cephalothorax long and wide. The pedipalps are light brown and the embolus is long and thin.

Distribution and habitat

''Phintella caledonia'' has only been discovered in the

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

around

Mont Panié Mont Panié is a mountain on the island of Grande Terre in New Caledonia, a special collectivity of France located in the south-west Pacific Ocean. At , it is the island's highest point. Mont Panié is situated in the Chaîne Centrale mountain ...

on New Caldonia.

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q3479483 Spiders of New Caledonia Salticidae Spiders described in 2009 Taxa named by Barbara Maria Patoleta