Ariadna karrooica

Hanover Tube-Web Spider
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Order:	Araneae
Infraorder:	Araneomorphae
Family:	Segestriidae
Genus:	Ariadna
Species:	A. karrooica
Binomial name
	Ariadna karrooica; Purcell, 1904

Short description: Species of spider

Ariadna karrooica is a species of spider in the family Segestriidae.^[2] It is endemic to South Africa and is commonly known as the Hanover tube-web spider.^[3]

Distribution

Ariadna karrooica has been sampled from three South African provinces, Eastern Cape, Free State, and Northern Cape. The species occurs at altitudes ranging from 7 to 1,645 m above sea level. Notable locations include the type locality Hanover, Port Elizabeth, Benfontein Nature Reserve, and Tswalu Kalahari Reserve.^[3]

Habitat and ecology

The species inhabits multiple biomes including Grassland, Nama Karoo, Savanna, and Thicket biomes. It constructs tube signal-webs made in crevices of walls, rocks, fallen tree trunks, or bark of trees.^[3]

Description

The colour of the carapace and legs is similar to the darkest specimens of A. bilineata, but the anterior metatarsi are dark reddish or almost black. The abdomen is pallid, more or less suffused with purplish, at least on the dorsal and ventral surfaces, with the middle of the epigastric area and sometimes a couple of posterior ventral patches dark purplish. The sternum and labium are deep blackish-brown, with the labium sometimes paler at apex. Total length is 10 mm in females and 7.5 mm in males.^[3]

Conservation

Ariadna karrooica is listed as least concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide geographical range. The species is protected in Benfontein Nature Reserve and Tswalu Kalahari Reserve.^[3]

Taxonomy

The species was originally described by W. F. Purcell in 1904 from the type locality Hanover.^[3]

References

↑ Purcell, W.F. (1904). "Descriptions of new genera and species of South African spiders". Transactions of the South African Philosophical Society 15: 115-173.
↑ "Ariadna karrooica Purcell, 1904". World Spider Catalog. https://wsc.nmbe.ch/species/33890. Retrieved 2025-09-28.
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 ^3.2 ^3.3 ^3.4 ^3.5 Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2021). The Segestriidae of South Africa. Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. pp. 1-22. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7162194. This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.