Achaearanea

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Achaearanea
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Family: Theridiidae
Genus: Achaearanea
Strand, 1929
Type species
Achaea insignis
O. P-Cambridge, 1882
Species

see text

Diversity
c. 30 species
Synonyms

Achaea

Achaearanea is a genus of spiders in the Theridiidae (tangle web spider) family.

Contents

[edit] Taxonomy

This genus used to include the extremely abundant common house spider, which was transferred to genus Parasteatoda in 2006, together with many other species. A. veruculata and many more species were moved to genus Cryptachaea in 2008. Others were moved to the revived Henziectypus. The genus was thus reduced from about 150 species to about 30 species during major revisions.[1] Possibly even more species should be transferred to other genera[2].

[edit] Description

This genus includes small and large theridiids. The legs are medium long, with spines and usually many hairs. Their web is an irregular network of threads, usually in a sheltered place.[3]

[edit] Distribution

Species are found around the world, with several species from South America, China and Korea, India, Australia and Africa. Some species are endemic to several small islands.[1]

[edit] Species

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ a b Platnick 2009
  2. ^ Yoshida 2008
  3. ^ Fitch 1963

[edit] References

  • Fitch, Henry S. (1963): Spiders of The University of Kansas Natural History Reservation and Rockefeller Experimental Tract.
  • Yoshida, Hajime (2008): A revision of the genus Achaearanea (Araneae: Theridiidae). Acta Arachnologica 57(1): 37-40. PDF
  • Platnick, Norman I. (2009): The world spider catalog, version 9.5. American Museum of Natural History.


Personal tools
Namespaces

Variants
Actions
Navigation
Interaction
Toolbox
Print/export
Languages