Nopsides

Nopsides is a monotypic genus of North American araneomorph spiders in the family Caponiidae, containing the single species, Nopsides ceralbonus. It is one of three nopine species, in addition to Tarsonops and Orthonops, described by Ralph Vary Chamberlin from specimens collected from the Baja California region and nearby islands in 1924.[2] They are active during the night, hiding under large stones of Mexico's deserts and xeric shrublands during the day.[3]

Nopsides
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Caponiidae
Genus: Nopsides
Chamberlin, 1924[1]
Species:
N. ceralbonus
Binomial name
Nopsides ceralbonus

This species has only been found in north and central Mexico, and might also occur in Peru,[1] though the single specimen found is a juvenile and difficult to identify with absolute certainty.[3]

Description

These spiders have subsegmented tarsi similar to the other nopine genera, Nops, Tarsonops, and Orthonops. They can easily be distinguished from other nopines by their unique eye pattern: two distinctly separate rows of four eyes each. They can sometimes be further distinguished by the claws on leg tarsi. In most spiders with three claws, the unpaired claw is smaller than the other two. However, Nopsides will sometimes have an elongated third claw that sometimes extends even farther dorsally than the other two. Certain species of Nops also have this feature, though they haven't been studied enough to determine its prevalence.[3]

References
  1. Gloor, Daniel; Nentwig, Wolfgang; Blick, Theo; Kropf, Christian (2019). "Gen. Nopsides Chamberlin, 1924". World Spider Catalog Version 20.0. Natural History Museum Bern. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2019-05-17.
  2. Chamberlin, R. V. (1924). "The spider fauna of the shores and islands of the Gulf of California". Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences. 12: 561–694.
  3. Jiménez, M. L.; Platnick, N. I.; Dupérré, N. (2011). "The haplogyne spider genus Nopsides (Araneae, Caponiidae), with notes on Amrishoonops". American Museum Novitates. 3708 (3708): 1–18. doi:10.1206/3708.2. S2CID 84120801.


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