''Theotima minutissima'' is a minute (0.9mm) spider.

Distribution

With a

pantropical A pantropical ("all tropics") distribution is one which covers tropical regions of both hemispheres. Examples of species include caecilians, modern sirenians and the plant genera ''Acacia'' and ''Bacopa''. ''Neotropical'' is a zoogeographic term ...

distribution''T. minutissima'' occurs in

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Cos ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

and

Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

. It is especially abundant in the tropical forest leaf litter on El Yunque,

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

. However, with more than a thousand specimens collected over many years, none has ever been a male. It is now known that at least this species, and possibly others in the genus ''Theotima'', reproduce

parthenogenetic Parthenogenesis (; from the Greek grc, παρθένος, translit=parthénos, lit=virgin, label=none + grc, γένεσις, translit=génesis, lit=creation, label=none) is a natural form of asexual reproduction in which growth and developmen ...

ally. Its preferred habitat is litter composed of smaller leaves in second growth forests with understory shrubs or in those forests with damper and more easily decayed leaves such as

mahogany Mahogany is a straight-grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Unive ...

. The species prefers elevations less than 800m.

References

* Edwards (2003): Observations of ''Theotima minutissimus'' (Araneae, Ochyroceratidae), a parthenogenetic spider. ''The Journal of Arachnology'' 31:274-27
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{{Taxonbar, from=Q2165559 Ochyroceratidae Pantropical spiders Arthropods of Puerto Rico Spiders of Central America Arthropods of the Philippines Arthropods of Thailand Spiders described in 1929 Taxa named by Alexander Petrunkevitch