Melecosa | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
Class: | Arachnida |
Order: | Araneae |
Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
Family: | Lycosidae |
Genus: | Melecosa |
Species: | M. alpina
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Binomial name | |
Melecosa alpina (Marusik, Azarkina & Koponen, 2004)[1]
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Melecosa is a genus of spiders in the family Lycosidae. Its lone species is found in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and China.[1]
The species was first described in 2004 by Marusik, Azarkina, and Koponen as Sibirocosa alpina, then transferred into its own genus in 2015.
This spider has a body length of up to 5.75 mm and has shorter legs than other Sibirocosa species. It is distinctively marked: the front of the cephalothorax (where the eyes are located) is black with two longitudinal brown stripes; the carapace is brown with paler stripes; the abdomen is blackish with a broad brown stripe down the middle. The legs have pale rings and differ from other Sibirocosa species by having a smaller number (3 vs. 4) of ventral tibial spines.[2]