Myrmarachne melanocephala MacLeay, 1839

SPECIES |   ACCEPTED   |   TYPE SPECIES

LSID: urn:lsid:nmbe.ch:spidersp:034850

Permalink: https://wsc.nmbe.ch/lsid/urn:lsid:nmbe.ch:spidersp:034850

Described:

Distribution: Pakistan to Vietnam and Indonesia


Type Repository Provide information
  • Holotype: National Zoological Collections, Zoological Survey of India (NZC-ZSI), Kolkata, India f of Mymarachne calcuttaensis - (Caleb & Joseph, 2025b)
Taxonomic References
Myrmarachne melanocephala MacLeay, 1839: 11, pl. 1, f. 4 (Dm) Original description
Myrmecia melanocephala Walckenaer, 1841: 462 (Df)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Galiano, 1969b: 146 (type locality is "Bengal," not Cuba)
Myrmarachne orientales Tikader, 1973b: 60, f. 3-6 (Dmf) [urn:lsid:nmbe.ch:spidersp:034866]
Myrmarachne orientales Tikader & Biswas, 1981: 105, f. 193-194 (f)
Myrmarachne orientalis Brignoli, 1983c: 644 (lapsus)
Myrmarachne calcuttaensis Biswas, 1984a: 126, f. 17-19 (Df) [urn:lsid:nmbe.ch:spidersp:034744]
Myrmarachne orientales Mushtaq et al., 1995: 91, f. 1A-F (m)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Edwards & Benjamin, 2009: 5, f. 1A-H, 2A-D, 3A-D, 4A-E, 5A-D (mf, S of Myrmarachne albicrurata, M. lateralis [both rejected by Prószyński, 2017b: 101, see M. ramosa], M. providens [revalidated by Prószyński, 2017b: 101], M. ramosa [revalidated by by Prószyński, 2017b: 101] and Salticus contractus [revalidated by Prószyński, 2017b: 100, see M. contracta])
Myrmarachne melanocephala Yamasaki & Edwards, 2013: 15, f. 46-58 (mf)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Yamasaki & Ahmad, 2013: 541, f. 32A-G, 33A-H, 34A-C (mf)
Myrmarachne orientales Sen et al., 2015: 42, f. 152-156, pl. 14 (f)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Benjamin, 2015b: 2625, f. 17A-D, 18A-D, 19A-D (m, S of Myrmarachne orientales)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Roy, Saha & Raychaudhuri, 2016: 24, f. 20A-F, 25I, 27R (f)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Caleb, 2016c: 410, f. 20-30 (mf)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Dhali, Saha & Raychaudhuri, 2017: 39, f. 105-109, pl. 17 (f)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Prószyński, 2017b: 103, f. 45B1, 45C9, 46B (mf)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Prószyński, 2018b: 165, f. 19B, 22E1 (f)
Myrmarachne orientalis Biswas & Raychaudhuri, 2018b: 55, f. 1a-f, pl. 1a-b (mf)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Kumar, Sharma & Sharma, 2021: 19755, f. 2A-D, 3, 4A-E (mf)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Chanu et al., 2024: 2057, f. 1-19 (mf)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Truong, Tran & Lam, 2025: 14, f. 7-10 (m)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Caleb & Joseph, 2025b: 22, f. 1-6 (f, S of Myrmarachne calcuttaensis)
Myrmarachne melanocephala Biswas, 2025c: 114, f. 2a-g, 3b (mf)
References

Benjamin, S. P. (2015b). Model mimics: antlike jumping spiders of the genus Myrmarachne from Sri Lanka. Journal of Natural History 49(43-44): 2609-2666. doi: 10.1080/00222933.2015.1034209 -- Show included taxa

Biswas, B. (1984a). Description of six new species of spiders of the families Clubionidae, Gnaphosidae and Salticidae from India. Bulletin of the Zoological Survey of India 6: 119-127. -- Show included taxa

Biswas, V. (2025c). Ant-mimicking jumping spiders of genus Myrmarachne of Bangladesh (Araneae: Salticidae: Myrmarachninae). Serket 21(1): 110-117. -- Show included taxa

Biswas, V. & Raychaudhuri, D. (2018b). Ant-like spiders of Bangladesh-II: genus Myrmarachne MacLeay (Araneae: Salticidae). Bangladesh Journal of Entomology 28(1): 53-64. -- Show included taxa

Brignoli, P. M. (1983c). A catalogue of the Araneae described between 1940 and 1981. Manchester University Press, 755 pp. -- Show included taxa

Caleb, J. T. D. (2016c). Taxonomic notes on some ant-mimicking jumping spiders (Araneae: Salticidae) from India. Arthropoda Selecta 25(4): 403-420. doi: 10.15298/arthsel.25.4.09 -- Show included taxa

Caleb, J. T. D. & Joseph, M. M. (2025b). On the synonymy of Myrmarachne calcuttaensis Biswas, 1984 (Araneae: Salticidae). Far Eastern Entomologist 521: 21-24. doi: 10.25221/fee.521.3 -- Show included taxa

Chanu, N. P., Devi, M. B., Kananbala, A. & Singh, C. D. (2024). Morphometrical aspects of two Myrmarachne species from Manipur. Journal of Experimental Zoology India 27(2): 2057-2061. doi: 10.59467/jez.2024.27.2.2057 -- Show included taxa

Dhali, D. C., Saha, S. & Raychaudhuri, D. (2017). Litter and ground dwelling spiders (Araneae: Arachnida) of reserve forests of Dooars, West Bengal. World Scientific News 63: 1-242. -- Show included taxa

Edwards, G. B. & Benjamin, S. P. (2009). A first look at the phylogeny of the Myrmarachninae, with rediscovery and redescription of the type species of Myrmarachne (Araneae: Salticidae). Zootaxa 2309: 1-29. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.2309.1.1 -- Show included taxa

Galiano, M. E. (1969b). Salticidae (Araneae) formiciformes. VII. El género Myrmarachne Mac Leay, 1839, en America. Revista del Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales Bernardino Rivadavia (Ent.) 3: 107-148. -- Show included taxa

Kumar, R., Sharma, M. & Sharma, A. K. (2021). New record of Myrmarachne melanocephala MacLeay, 1839 (Araneae: Salticidae) from Jharkhand, India and biogeographical implications of the co-occurrence of its ant model Tetraponera rufonigra Jerdon, 1851. Journal of Threatened Taxa 13(12): 19753-19761. doi: 10.11609/jott.7500.13.12.19753-19761 -- Show included taxa

MacLeay, W. S. (1839). On some new forms of Arachnida. Annals of Natural History 2(7): 1-14, pl. 1-2. -- Show included taxa

Mushtaq, S., Beg, M. A., Waris, M. & Khan, A. A. (1995). Myrmarachne maratha Tikader and Myrmarachne orientales Tikader (Araneae: Salticidae), two new records to Pakistan. Pakistan Journal of Zoology 27: 91-92. -- Show included taxa

Prószyński, J. (2017b). Pragmatic classification of the world's Salticidae (Araneae). Ecologica Montenegrina 12: 1-133. doi: 10.37828/em.2017.12.1 -- Show included taxa

Prószyński, J. (2018b). Review of genera Evarcha and Nigorella, with comments on Emertonius, Padilothorax [sic], Stagetillus, and description of five new genera and two new species (Araneae: Salticidae). Ecologica Montenegrina 16: 130-179. doi: 10.37828/em.2018.16.12 -- Show included taxa

Roy, T. K., Saha, S. & Raychaudhuri, D. (2016). A treatise on the jumping spiders (Araneae: Salticidae) of tea ecosystem of Dooars, West Bengal, India. World Scientific News 53(1): 1-66. -- Show included taxa

Sen, S., Dhali, D. C., Saha, S. & Raychaudhuri, D. (2015). Spiders (Araneae: Arachnida) of reserve forests of Dooars: Gorumara National Park, Chapramari Wildlife Sanctuary and Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary. World Scientific News 20: 1-339. -- Show included taxa

Tikader, B. K. (1973b). Studies on some ant-like spiders from India (family: Salticidae). Proceedings of the Indian Academy of Science 78(B): 59-67. -- Show included taxa

Tikader, B. K. & Biswas, B. (1981). Spider fauna of Calcutta and vicinity: Part-I. Records of the Zoological Survey of India, Occasional Paper 30: 1-149. -- Show included taxa

Truong, T. V., Tran, D. B. & Lam, D. H. (2025). Two species of the jumping spiders (Araneae: Salticidae) new for the fauna of Vietnam. Far Eastern Entomologist 534: 11-16. doi: 10.25221/fee.534.2 -- Show included taxa

Walckenaer, C. A. (1841). Histoire naturelle des Insects. Aptères. Tome deuxième. Roret, Paris, 549 pp., pl. 16-22. doi: 10.5962/bhl.title.61095 [[not published in 1837, see pp. 430, 452, 505; plates in second pdf of Walckenaer, 1837]] -- Show included taxa

Yamasaki, T. & Edwards, G. B. (2013). The genus Myrmarchne (Araneae, Salticidae) in Flores, Indonesia. ZooKeys 299: 1-20. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.299.4970 -- Show included taxa

Yamasaki, T. & Ahmad, A. H. (2013). Taxonomic study of the genus Myrmarachne of Borneo (Araneae: Salticidae). Zootaxa 3710: 501-556. doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.3710.6.1 -- Show included taxa

External Resource References

* Disclaimer
As External Resources, the World Spider Catalog links here to species pages of other databases. They may contain further information for the given species. The databases, listed as External Resources, however, are not managed by World Spider Catalog and the information given there is not necessarily in agreement with the World Spider Catalog. All responsibility for such data is with the external database.

Metzner, H. (2026). Jumping spiders (Arachnida: Araneae: Salticidae) of the world. Online at https://www.jumping-spiders.com.

Prószyński, J. (2025). Salticidae (Araneae) Genera of the World "a management tool for developing a new system of Salticidae" - a scrollable e-Textbook. Version December 20th, 2025, online at http://www.salticidae.pl.

GBIF.org (2026). GBIF Home Page (via GBIF API). Available from: https://www.gbif.org [8 January 2026]

Edit History
Date Type Reference Old value Comment
2025-11-12 New taxonomic reference entry Biswas & Raychaudhuri, 2018b
2025-11-11 New taxonomic reference entry Biswas, 2025c
2025-10-03 New taxonomic reference entry Truong, Tran & Lam, 2025
2025-10-03 Species distribution update Truong, Tran & Lam, 2025 Old value
2025-04-02 New taxonomic reference entry Caleb & Joseph, 2025b
2025-04-02 Species synonymy Caleb & Joseph, 2025b Myrmarachne calcuttaensis synonymized with Myrmarachne melanocephala
2024-08-21 New taxonomic reference entry Chanu et al., 2024
2021-10-29 New taxonomic reference entry Kumar, Sharma & Sharma, 2021
2018-04-27 New taxonomic reference entry Prószyński, 2018b
2017-09-17 New taxonomic reference entry Prószyński, 2017b
2017-09-17 Taxonomic reference assigned to new taxon Taxonomic reference entry assigned to Myrmarachne contracta (Karsch, 1880)
2017-09-17 Taxonomic reference assigned to new taxon Taxonomic reference entry assigned to Myrmarachne providens (Peckham & Peckham, 1892)
2017-09-17 Taxonomic reference assigned to new taxon Taxonomic reference entry assigned to Myrmarachne providens (Peckham & Peckham, 1892)
2017-09-17 Taxonomic reference assigned to new taxon Taxonomic reference entry assigned to Myrmarachne ramosa Badcock, 1918
2017-09-17 Taxonomic reference assigned to new taxon Taxonomic reference entry assigned to Myrmarachne ramosa Badcock, 1918
2017-09-17 Taxonomic reference assigned to new taxon Taxonomic reference entry assigned to Myrmarachne ramosa Badcock, 1918
2017-09-17 Taxonomic reference assigned to new taxon Taxonomic reference entry assigned to Myrmarachne ramosa Badcock, 1918
2017-09-17 Taxonomic reference assigned to new taxon Taxonomic reference entry assigned to Myrmarachne ramosa Badcock, 1918
2017-02-08 New taxonomic reference entry Dhali, Saha & Raychaudhuri, 2017
2016-12-22 New taxonomic reference entry Caleb, 2016c
2016-10-25 Taxonomic reference added from other taxon Old value
2016-09-30 New taxonomic reference entry Roy, Saha & Raychaudhuri, 2016
2015-12-10 New taxonomic reference entry Sen et al., 2015
2015-10-29 New taxonomic reference entry Benjamin, 2015b
2015-10-29 Species synonymy Benjamin, 2015b Myrmarachne orientales synonymized with Myrmarachne melanocephala

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