Ground spider
Encyclopedia
Ground spiders include nearly 2,000 described species
in over 100 genera
, distributed worldwide. This makes the family the seventh largest known. New species are still being discovered. They are closely related to Clubionidae.
Common genera include Gnaphosa, Drassodes, Micaria, Cesonia, Zelotes and many others.
There are 14 species known to northwest Europe
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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.
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
in over 100 genera
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
, distributed worldwide. This makes the family the seventh largest known. New species are still being discovered. They are closely related to Clubionidae.
Common genera include Gnaphosa, Drassodes, Micaria, Cesonia, Zelotes and many others.
There are 14 species known to northwest Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
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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-mimickingAnt mimicry
Ant mimicry is mimicry of ants by other organisms. Ants are abundant all over the world, and insect predators that rely on vision to identify their prey such as birds and wasps normally avoid them, either because they are unpalatable, or aggressive. Thus some other arthropods mimic ants to escape...
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.