Satyrex somalicus Zamani & von Wirth, 2025

Described by Volker von Wirth, Alireza Zamani

Common name: Somali dwarf tarantula

♂ Male described
Habitat Habitat © Zamani et al. (2025), fig. 24F, arid habitat at Quljeed, Awdal, Somaliland. Photo: František Kovařík

Type Locality and Records

Type locality

Original Description

Zamani, A., von Wirth, V., Fabiánek, P., Höfling, J., Just, P., Korba, J., Petzold, A., Stockmann, M., Elmi, H. S. A., Vences, M. & Opatova, V. (2025). Size matters: a new genus of tarantula with the longest male palps, and an integrative revision of Monocentropus Pocock, 1897 (Araneae, Theraphosidae, Eumenophorinae). ZooKeys 1247: 89-126.

Distribution

Somaliland

Type Locality: SOMALILAND, Awdal Region, Quljeed, 1300 m a.s.l.

Adult Male Activity

Collection months of 1 adult male specimen record, against the rainfall where they live

Dry seasonDry seasonWet seasonDry season126°18°JFMAMJJASOND1080mm0
Adult males collected

Mean monthly rainfall and temperature 2001–2020 near where these males were collected, Somaliland. MERRA-2 via NASA POWER, for a grid cell averaging 1463 m. Wet and dry seasons, from the rainfall at the locality itself.

Etymology

The specific epithet refers to the distribution of the species on the Somali Peninsula, the Horn of Africa.

Specimen Records (1)

SMNS-Aran-004397 ♂ Holotype Somaliland

Quljeed, 1300 m a.s.l., Awdal

September 2017 · col. F. Kovařík

Holotype male of Satyrex somalicus, and the only known specimen. Total length 18.3 mm, the smallest in the genus.

Bibliography (1)

Zamani, A., von Wirth, V., Fabiánek, P., Höfling, J., Just, P., Korba, J., Petzold, A., Stockmann, M., Elmi, H. S. A., Vences, M. & Opatova, V. (2025). Size matters: a new genus of tarantula with the longest male palps, and an integrative revision of Monocentropus Pocock, 1897 (Araneae, Theraphosidae, Eumenophorinae). ZooKeys 1247: 89-126.
The World Spider Catalogue