Thyene imperialis
| Thyene imperialis | |
|---|---|
| female | |
| male | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Salticidae |
| Genus: | Thyene |
| Species: | T. imperialis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Thyene imperialis (Rossi, 1846)
| |
Thyene imperialis is a species of jumping spider in the genus Thyene that have a wide distribution, being found across Southern Europe, North Africa and Asia, as far east as Indonesia. The spider lives in cultivated land, among cereal crops and cotton, and is being looked at as a possible biological pest control. It is a medium-sized spider with a flat carapace that is typically between 2.65 and 3.25 mm (0.104 and 0.128 in) long and an ovoid abdomen that is typically between 2.7 and 3.3 mm (0.11 and 0.13 in) long. The spider has 'horns' formed of black hairs on the side of its eye field and white scales on its clypeus. The female has a sandy carapace, the male being yellow, both having a pattern on their abdomen, although this varies between individual spiders. Its chelicerae have two small teeth to the front and one to the back. The spider has distinctive copulatory organs, with the male have a coiled embolus and the female a small white rectangular groove in its epigyne.