About: This is a delightful dwarf species from Africa. As with Heterothele villosella, they are said to be a communal species. A gentleman by the name of Cédrik Grenier spent much time observing them in their natural habitat and has a short video clip that shows what the tree area that they inhabit in Africa looks like. The video can be found here: Video
In their natural habitat, they are found both on the ground in burrows and in the trees. They are heavy webbers and have been spotted living communally in and around Uapaca trees, which offer many anchor points and crevices for webbing and hiding. They have a stunningly patterned abdomen, with a tint of blue.
The very interesting article he wrote about the species can be found here: Research Report
Taxonomy and name history:
Mygale gabonensis Lucas, 1858
Diplura longipalpis Karsch, 1879
Heterothele gabonensis Pocock, 1899
Heterothele gabonensis Gerschman & Schiapelli, 1973
Heterothele gabonensis Smith, 1990
Heterothele gabonensis Schmidt, 1993
Heterothele gabonensis Schmidt, 2003
