Seasonal Variation and Species Richness of Epigeic Spiders in Macadamia Orchards, South Africa
ABSTRACT Our current knowledge of spider species composition in macadamia orchards in Mpumalanga province, South Africa is based on plant‐dwellers. Thus, this study generated a checklist of epigeic spiders sampled in July and November 2020 from two macadamia orchards in Mpumalanga. We collected 845 specimens in 21 families, 43 genera, and 57 species, of which 54 were new records in macadamia orchards in Mpumalanga. Greater species richness and abundance of spiders were recorded in November than July, and these months supported different species composition. This study increased the number of species recorded from macadamia orchards in Mpumalanga to 134.
Authors
- Tarombera Mwabvu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8947-7811)
- A.S. Dippenaar-Schoeman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1532-1379)
- Inam Yekwayo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9722-6545)
- Vhuawelo Simba (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4713-7584)
Institutions
- University of Mpumalanga (ZA)
- University of Venda (ZA)
- Walter Sisulu University (ZA)
Publication Details
- Journal
- African Journal of Ecology
- Published
- 2025-08-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1111/aje.70086
- Primary Topic
- Hymenoptera taxonomy and phylogeny
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00