Szűts, Tamás;Maddison, Wayne Paul
Ajaraneola
Sign in to saveAjaraneola is a genus of African jumping spiders that contains two species, Ajaraneola mastigophora and Ajaraneola pajakwandy. The name of the genus derives from the name of forest goddess, Aja, in one of the languages of Nigeria, Yoruba. The genus was first described in 2011 from specimens of Ajaraneola mastigophora found in Nigeria. The second species was first described in 2021 from examples found in Uganda. The spiders are medium-sized and have a characteristic whip-like embolus.
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Article
9 sectionsContents
- Taxonomy and etymology
- Species
- Ajaraneola mastigophora
- Ajaraneola pajakwandy
- Description
- Distribution
- References
- Citations
- Bibliography
Ajaraneola is a genus of African jumping spiders that contains two species, Ajaraneola mastigophora and Ajaraneola pajakwandy. The name of the genus derives from the name of forest goddess, Aja, in one of the languages of Nigeria, Yoruba. The genus was first described in 2011 from specimens of Ajaraneola mastigophora found in Nigeria. The second species was first described in 2021 from examples found in Uganda. The spiders are medium-sized and have a characteristic whip-like embolus.
==Taxonomy and etymology== When first described by Wanda Wesołowska and Anthony Russell-Smith in 2011, Ajaraneola was placed in the family Salticidae. The name of the spider recalls two words, one in Yoruba, a language of southern Nigeria, and the other in Latin. The first part of the name, Aja, is a Yoruba goddess of the forest. The second part derives from the Latin word araneola, meaning little spider.