 Portia is in the subfamily Spartaeinae, which is thought to be primitive .: 491 Molecular phylogeny, a technique that compares the DNA of organisms to reconstruct the tree of life, indicates that Portia is a member of the clade Spartaeinae, that Spartaeinae is basal (quite similar to the ancestors of all jumping spiders), that Portia ′ s closest relative is the genus Spartaeus, and that the next closest are Phaeacius and Holcolaetis .: 53
