Hypsosinga pygmaea is a species of orb weaver in the spider family Araneidae, found in North America, Eurasia and southern Africa. It is commonly known as the spotted false pajama spider.
Hypsosinga pygmaea is widespread and known from North America, Europe, Turkey, Israel, Caucasus, Russia to Central Asia, China, Korea, Japan and South Africa.
In South Africa, the species is known from four provinces across a moderate range at altitudes from 47 to 1,471 m above sea level. The South African distribution includes Mpumalanga, Gauteng, and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. Notable localities include Loskop Dam Nature Reserve, Nelspruit, Irene, Ezemvelo Nature Reserve, Roodeplaatdam Nature Reserve, and Ndumo Game Reserve.
Hypsosinga pygmaea constructs a complete orb-web probably sometimes with a retreat. The species is sampled mainly by sweep-netting grasses and herbs from the Grassland and Savanna biomes.
Hypsosinga pygmaea is listed as Least Concern by the South African National Biodiversity Institute due to its wide global range. The species is protected in several reserves including Loskop Dam Nature Reserve, Ezemvelo Nature Reserve, Roodeplaatdam Nature Reserve, Ndumo Game Reserve, and Blouberg Nature Reserve. No conservation actions are recommended.
The species is known from both sexes.
These three subspecies belong to the species Hypsosinga pygmaea: