Heliocapensis capensis
| Cape Heliocapensis Sunny Jumping Spider | |
|---|---|
 | |
| female | |
 | |
| female | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Salticidae |
| Genus: | Heliocapensis |
| Species: | H. capensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Heliocapensis capensis (Wesołowska, 1986)[1] | |
Heliocapensis capensis is a species of jumping spider in the family Salticidae.[2] It is endemic to South Africa and is commonly known as the Cape Heliocapensis sunny jumping spider.[3]
Distribution
[edit]Heliocapensis capensis is found in the Western Cape and Northern Cape provinces of South Africa.[3] The species has been sampled from areas around Cape Town and Clanwilliam, as well as from the Northern Cape.[3] Locations include Cape Town, Clanwilliam, Fernkloof Nature Reserve, Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, Stellenbosch, Table Mountain National Park, Nieuwoudtville, and Tankwa Karoo National Park.[3]
Habitat and ecology
[edit]These spiders are free living plant-dwellers sampled from the Fynbos Biome at altitudes ranging from 7 to 719 m.[3]
Description
[edit]
female
female
female
![[icon]](/restyle/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (October 2025) |
Conservation
[edit]Heliocapensis capensis is listed as Data Deficient for taxonomic reasons.[3] More sampling is needed to collect the male and determine the species' range.[3] The species is known from a wide range with no known threats and is protected in Table Mountain National Park, Fernkloof Nature Reserve, and Tankwa Karoo National Park.[3]
Taxonomy
[edit]The species is known only from the female.[3] It was transferred to Heliocapensis by Wesołowska in 2024.[4] Heliocapensis bellus is likely a synonym and the unknown male of H. capensis, as they were collected from the same locality at the same time.[3]
References
[edit]- ↑ Wesołowska, W. (1986). "A Revision of the Genus Heliophanus C. L. Koch, 1833 (Aranei: Salticidae)". Annales Zoologici, Warszawa. 40: 1–254.
- ↑ "Heliocapensis capensis (Wesołowska, 1986)". World Spider Catalog. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Van der Walt, V.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2025). The Salticidae of South Africa. Part 3 (He-Iran). Version 1. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 24. doi:10.5281/zenodo.17103454.
This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license. - ↑ Wesołowska, W. (2024). "Taxonomic notes on the genus Heliophanus C.L. Koch, 1833, with description of three additional genera (Araneae: Salticidae: Chrysillini)". Zootaxa. 5405 (1): 80–92. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5405.1.3. PMID 38480396.