{{Short description|Species of crab spider}} {{Speciesbox | name = Crowned Smodicinus crab spider | image = Smodicinus coroniger 434455592.jpg | image_caption = from Zimbabwe | image2 = Smodicinus coroniger 434455670.jpg | image2_caption = | taxon = Smodicinus coroniger | authority = Simon, 1895 | synonyms = {{Specieslist |Smodicinus affinis|Lessert, 1943 }} }}
'''''Smodicinus coroniger''''' is a species of crab spider in the family Thomisidae. It is the only species in the genus '''''Smodicinus''''' and is endemic to Africa.<ref name="wsc" /> It is commonly known as the '''crowned Smodicinus crab spider'''.
==Etymology== The specific name ''coroniger'' derives from the Latin ''corona'' (crown) and the suffix ''-iger'' (bearing), referring to the distinctive crown-like crest on the carapace.
==Distribution== ''Smodicinus coroniger'' has been recorded from Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and South Africa.<ref name="wsc" /><ref name="dippenaar2020" /> In South Africa, it occurs in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Limpopo provinces.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />
==Habitat== ''Smodicinus coroniger'' is a free-living plant-dweller found primarily on trees in savanna, Indian Ocean Coastal Belt, and thicket biomes. It inhabits elevations ranging from 1 to 1,097 metres above sea level.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />
==Description== {{see also|Glossary of spider terms}} ''Smodicinus coroniger'' is a small crab spider with a total length of 3–6 mm for both females and males.<ref name="dippenaar2020" /> The species is easily recognised by its highly distinctive carapace, which is elevated to form a prominent crest directed posteriorly. This crest is divided into six pointed tubercles that are flattened above: two tubercles point backwards (posteriorly) and four point sideways (laterally).<ref name="dippenaar2020" />
The carapace is pale brown, suffused with yellow, and sometimes bears white markings on the edges. The sternum and mouthparts are yellowish-brown. Both eye rows are recurved, with the lateral eyes being larger than the median eyes.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />
The opisthosoma is blackish and mottled with white or displays distinct white markings. The legs are the same color as the carapace and are banded with white.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />
==Behaviour and life cycle== Adult males have been recorded from November to March, while females occur from October to January.<ref name="dippenaar1980" /> The species is considered very rare and is mainly sampled from trees.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />
==Conservation status== ''Smodicinus coroniger'' is listed as Least Concern in South Africa due to its wide geographical range across multiple African countries.<ref name="dippenaar2020" /> The species is protected in eight protected areas and faces no known threats.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />
==Taxonomy== The genus ''Smodicinus'' was established by Eugène Simon in 1895, with ''S. coroniger'' as the type species.<ref name="simon1895a" /> ''Smodicinus affinis'' Lessert, 1943 was later synonymised with ''S. coroniger'' by Dippenaar-Schoeman in 1980.<ref name="dippenaar1980" />
==References== {{Reflist|refs= <ref name="wsc">{{cite web | url=https://wsc.nmbe.ch/species/41548 | title=Smodicinus coroniger Simon, 1895 | publisher=World Spider Catalog | access-date=15 September 2025}}</ref> <ref name="dippenaar2020">{{cite book | last1=Dippenaar-Schoeman | first1=A.S. | last2=Haddad | first2=C.R. | last3=Foord | first3=S.H. | last4=Lotz | first4=L.N. | year=2020 | title=The Thomisidae of South Africa. Part 3 Sm-T | publisher=South African National Survey of Arachnida | pages=1-79 | doi=10.5281/zenodo.7513278}}{{Creative Commons text attribution notice|cc=by4}}</ref> <ref name="dippenaar1980">{{cite journal | last=Dippenaar-Schoeman | first=A.S. | year=1980 | title=The crab-spiders of southern Africa (Araneae: Thomisidae). 2. The genera Pherecydes Pickard-Cambridge, 1883 and Smodicinus Simon, 1895 | journal=Journal of the Entomological Society of South Africa | volume=43 | pages=327-340}}</ref> <ref name="simon1895a">{{cite book | last=Simon | first=E. | year=1895 | title=Histoire naturelle des araignées. Deuxième édition, tome premier | publisher=Roret | location=Paris | pages=761-1084 | doi=10.5962/bhl.title.51973}}</ref> }}
==External links== * {{inaturalist taxon}}
{{Taxonbar|from1=Q18092520|from2=Q2164008}}
Category:Thomisidae Category:Spiders of Africa Category:Spiders described in 1895 Category:Monotypic Araneomorphae genera Category:Taxa named by Eugène Simon