''Augacephalus'' is a genus of harpacterine theraphosid

spider Spiders (order (biology), order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight limbs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude spider silk, silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and ran ...

s. It has three species, all of which are found in Africa.

Taxonomy and etymology

The type species of ''Augacephalus'' is ''A. breyeri'' which was described as ''

Pterinochilus ''Pterinochilus'' is a genus of Harpactirinae, baboon spiders that was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1897. They are found all throughout Africa. Species it contains ten species, all found in Africa: *''Pterinochilus alluaudi'' Lu ...

breyeri'' by Hewitt in 1919. In 2002, Gallon placed it a new genus, which he erected in the same paper, ''Augacephalus''.Gallon, R. C. (2002). Revision of the African genera ''Pterinochilus'' and ''Eucratoscelus'' (Araneae, Theraphosidae, Harpactirinae) with description of two new genera. ''Bulletin of the British Arachnological Society'' 12: 201-232 Its name comes from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

αυγή ''auga'' meaning "sun rays" and κεφᾰλή ''kephale'' meaning "head" which refers to the prominent, radial

cephalothorax The cephalothorax, also called prosoma in some groups, is a tagma of various arthropods, comprising the head and the thorax fused together, as distinct from the abdomen behind. (The terms ''prosoma'' and ''opisthosoma'' are equivalent to ''cepha ...

striae Stretch marks, also known as striae () or striae distensae, are a form of scarring on the skin with an off-color hue. Over time, they may diminish, but will not disappear completely. Striae are caused by tearing of the dermis during periods of ...

present in most species.

Natural history

All known species are

fossorial A fossorial animal () is one that is adapted to digging and which lives primarily (but not solely) underground. Examples of fossorial vertebrates are Mole (animal), moles, badgers, naked mole-rats, meerkats, armadillos, wombats, and mole salamand ...

and females lay eggs in a hammock egg-sack which yield about 95

lings.Gallon, R. C. (2010). On some southern African Harpactirinae, with notes on the eumenophorines ''Pelinobius muticus'' Karsch, 1885 and ''Monocentropella'' Strand, 1907 (Araneae, Theraphosidae). ''Bulletin of the British Arachnological Society'' 15: 29-48

Diagnosis

''Augacephalus'' is separated from other harpactirines in the following ways: Distinguished from '' Harpactirella'' by the presence of a retrolateral

chelicera The chelicerae () are the mouthparts of the subphylum Chelicerata, an arthropod group that includes arachnids, horseshoe crabs, and sea spiders. Commonly referred to as "jaws", chelicerae may be shaped as either articulated fangs, or as a type ...

scopula ''Scopula'' is a genus of moths in the family Geometridae described by Franz von Paula Schrank in 1802. Species It has 705 species which are listed here alphabetically. A *'' Scopula ablativa'' (Dognin, 1911) *'' Scopula abolita'' Herbulot, ...

composed of plumose

seta In biology, setae (; seta ; ) are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms. Animal setae Protostomes Depending partly on their form and function, protostome setae may be called macrotrichia, chaetae, ...

e (in males scopula not obviously composed of plumose setae). Separated from '' Harpactira'' and '' Trichognatha'' by the absence of a dense scopula on the upper prolateral cheliceral surface. Further separated from ''Harpactira'' by the absence of plumose stridulatory strikers on the prolateral maxillary surface, and by the absence of a discrete row of bristles below the retrolateral cheliceral scopula. Distinguished from '' Idiothele'' by the possession of digitiform distal segment on posterior

spinneret A spinneret is a silk-spinning organ of a spider or the larva of an insect. Some adult insects also have spinnerets, such as those borne on the forelegs of Embioptera. Spinnerets are usually on the underside of a spider's opisthosoma, and ar ...

s. Differs from ''

Ceratogyrus ''Ceratogyrus'' is a genus of tarantulas found in southern Africa. They are commonly called horned baboons for the foveal horn found on the peltidium in some species. Diagnosis They are readily distinguished from other African theraphosid g ...

'' by the lack of a

foveal The ''fovea centralis'' is a small, central pit composed of closely packed cones in the eye. It is located in the center of the ''macula lutea'' of the retina. The ''fovea'' is responsible for sharp central vision (also called foveal vision), ...

tubercle In anatomy, a tubercle (literally 'small tuber', Latin for 'lump') is any round nodule, small eminence, or warty outgrowth found on external or internal organs of a plant or an animal. In plants A tubercle is generally a wart-like projectio ...

/procurved fovea. Female ''Augacephalus'' are separated from those of '' Eucratoscelus'' by the unmodified (not incrassate) tibiae of leg IV. Male ''Augacephalus'' are separated from those of ''Eucratoscelus'' and ''

'' by lacking the distal proventral tibial apophysis or by the reduced surmounted megaspine. Further separated from ''Eucratoscelus'' by the absence of a distal proventral tumid protuberance on

metatarsus The metatarsal bones or metatarsus (: metatarsi) are a group of five long bones in the midfoot, located between the tarsal bones (which form the heel and the ankle) and the phalanges ( toes). Lacking individual names, the metatarsal bones are ...

I. The presence of a distal prodorsal spine on metatarsi III and IV further separates ''Augacephalus'' from ''Eucratoscelus''. Female ''Augacephalus'' are separated from those of ''Pterinochilus'' by the absence of long emergent setae on the chelicerae (giving them a velvety appearance), their robust

palp Pedipalps (commonly shortened to palps or palpi) are the secondary pair of forward appendages among chelicerates – a group of arthropods including spiders, scorpions, horseshoe crabs, and sea spiders. The pedipalps are lateral to the chelicera ...

i and legs I–II, and by the position of their posterior

sternal The sternum (: sternums or sterna) or breastbone is a long flat bone located in the central part of the chest. It connects to the ribs via cartilage and forms the front of the rib cage, thus helping to protect the heart, lungs, and major blood ve ...

sigilla (an impressed sclerotized spot).

Species

The

World Spider Catalog The World Spider Catalog (WSC) is an online searchable database concerned with spider taxonomy. It aims to list all accepted families, genera and species, as well as provide access to the related taxonomic literature. The WSC began as a series of ...

accepts the following species: *''

Augacephalus breyeri ''Augacephalus breyeri'' is a species of harpactirine theraphosid spider, found in South Africa, Mozambique and Eswatini. Description ''Augacephalus breyeri'' females are 40-55mm in total length. The cephalothorax is 15-22mm long and 12-18mm w ...

'' Hewitt, 1919 South Africa, Mozambique, Eswatini (

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

) *'' Augacephalus ezendami'' Gallon, 2001 Mozambique *'' Augacephalus junodi'' Simon, 1904 East, South Africa

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2608814 Theraphosidae Theraphosidae genera Spiders of Africa