- Ground spider
Taxobox
name = Ground spiders
image_width = 250px
image_caption = "Drassodes lapidosus "
regnum =Animal ia
phylum =Arthropoda
classis =Arachnida
ordo =Araneae
superfamilia =Gnaphosoidea
familia = Gnaphosidae
familia_authority = Pocock,1898
diversity_link = List of Gnaphosidae species
diversity = 114 genera, c. 2,000 species
range_
range_map_width = 250px
subdivision_ranks = Genera
subdivision = "Callilepis "
"Cesonia "
"Drassodes "
"Gnaphosa "
"Herpyllus "
"Micaria "
"Trachyzelotes "
"Zelotes "
"many others"The ground spiders (family "Gnaphosidae") include nearly 2,000 described
species in over 100 genera worldwide. This makes the family the 7th largest known. New species are still being discovered. They are closely related to theClubionidae Nieuwenhuys 2000] .Common genera include "Gnaphosa", "Drassodes", "Micaria", "Cesonia", "Zelotes" and many others.
There are 14 species known to northwest
Europe .Description
Generally, ground spiders are characterized by having barrel-shaped anterior spinnerets that are one spinneret diameter apart. The main exception to this rule is found in the ant-mimicking genus "Micaria". Another characteristic is an indentation in the endites (paired mouthparts anterior and lateral to the labium, or lip). All ground spiders lack a prey-capture web and generally run prey down on the surface. They hunt at night and spend the day in a silken retreat The thick-walled egg sacs are guarded by the mother until the spiderlings hatch.
Human interaction
At present, no ground spiders are known to be seriously venomous to humans. Very few people even notice these nearly worldwide reddish, brown, gray, striped or black spiders.
ee also
*
List of Gnaphosidae species
*Spider families Footnotes
References
* (1983): A revision of the American spiders of the genus "Zelotes" (Araneae, Gnaphosidae). "Bulletin of the AMNH" 174: 99-191. [http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/bitstream/2246/1035/1/B174a02.pdf PDF (29Mb)] - [http://hdl.handle.net/2246/1035 Abstract]
* Ed Nieuwenhuys (2000): [http://www.xs4all.nl/~ednieuw/Spiders/spidhome.htm Spiders of NW-Europe] Retrieved Jan 3, 2007. (with color pictures of some species)
* (2007): [http://research.amnh.org/entomology/spiders/catalog/index.html The world spider catalog] , version 8.0. "American Museum of Natural History".External links
* [http://www.arachnology.org/Arachnology/Pages/Araneae.html Arachnology Home Pages: Araneae]
* [http://research.amnh.org/entomology/spiders/catalog81-87/index.html Platnick, N.I. 2003. World Spider Catalog]
* [http://www.forestryimages.org/browse/subimages.cfm?SUB=11515 Pictures of "Herpyllus ecclesiastus"] (free for noncommercial use)
* AMNH: [http://research.amnh.org/entomology/blackrock2/families/gnaphosidae.htm Key to some genera]
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