A check list of the spiders of the Kruger National Park, South Africa (Arachnida: Araneae)

Abstract

As part of the South African National Survey of Arachnida (SANSA), projects are underway to determine the biodiversity of arachnids present in protected areas in South Africa. Spiders have been collected over a period of 16 years from the Kruger National Park, South Africa. A check list is provided consisting of 152 species, 116 genera and 40 families. This represents about 7.6 % of the total known South African spider fauna. Of the 152 species, 103 are new records for the park. The ground dwelling spiders comprise 58 species from 25 families. Of these, 21 % are web dwellers and 62 % free living, while 17 % live in burrows. From the plant layer, 94 species have been collected of which 53 % were web builders and 47 % free living wandering spiders.