This relationship can be [[commensalism|commensal]] or even [[Mutualism (biology)|mutual]] if the dewdrop spider feeds on small trapped insects that are not eaten by the host.Tso 2000 Some species can even prey upon the host.Guarisco 1999\n",{"template":{"target":{"wt":"Automatic taxobox\n","href":"./Template:Automatic_taxobox"},"params":{"taxon":{"wt":"Argyrodes"},"name":{"wt":"Dewdrop spiders"},"image":{"wt":"Argyrodes Kaldari 01.jpg"},"fossil_range":{"wt":"{{Fossil range| Neogene| Present}}"},"authority":{"wt":"[[Eugène Simon|Simon]], 1864"},"type_species":{"wt":"''[[Argyrodes argyrodes|A. argyrodes]]''"},"type_species_authority":{"wt":"([[Charles Athanase Walckenaer|Walckenaer]], 1841)"},"subdivision_ranks":{"wt":"Species"},"subdivision":{"wt":"93, [[#Species|see text]]"},"synonyms":{"wt":"*''Argyrodina'' [[Embrik Strand|Strand]], 1926{{cite journal| last=Levi| first=H. W.| last2=Levi| first2=L. R.| year=1962| title=The genera of the spider family Theridiidae| journal=Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology| volume=127| page=16}}\n*''Conopistha'' [[Ferdinand Karsch|Karsch]], 1881\n*''Microcephalus'' Restrepo, 1944{{cite journal| last=Levi| first=H. W.| year=1972| title=Taxonomic-nomenclatural notes on misplaced theridiid spiders (Araneae: Theridiidae), with observations on ''Anelosimus| journal=Transactions of the American Microscopical Society| volume=91| page=534}}"},"synonyms_ref":{"wt":""}},"i":0}}]}" id="mwBA">Argyrodes, also called dewdrop spiders, is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1864.[1] They occur worldwide, and are best known for their kleptoparasitism. They can spin their own webs, but tend to invade and reside in their hosts' webs.[2] This relationship can be commensal or even mutual if the dewdrop spider feeds on small trapped insects that are not eaten by the host.[3] Some species can even prey upon the host.[2]
The genus name is a combination of the Ancient Greek "argyros" (άργυρος), meaning "silver", and the suffix "-odes", meaning "like".[1]
Description
Most species are relatively small, and many are black with silvery markings. A. incursus has a body length of 3 to 4.5 millimetres (0.12 to 0.18in),[7] while A. fissifrons has a body length of about 12 millimetres (0.47in).[3] The body has a characteristic conical or triangle shape with a shorter third pair of legs, common in web dwelling spiders.[8] The silver coloration of Argyrodes may be able to attract moths and other insects as it stimulates their photoreceptors and may resemble starlight.[9]
Distribution
Most Argyrodes are found in the tropics, though fifteen species are found in the United States.[2]A. elevatus is found in the southern US, A. nephilae in Florida and A. pluto in Maryland, Virginia, and Missouri. The latter species has been reported as far south as Chihuahua and Jamaica as well.[10]
Behavior
Argyrodes are kleptoparasitic spiders that live on the webs created by orb-weaver spiders. These spiders feed on the small prey items caught in the host webs that they parasitize. In some instances, Argyrodes may even feed on previously digested carcasses that remain on the web.[11] While these spiders are well known for being kleptoparasitic, they are also arachnophagous, meaning they prey on other spiders. Argyrodes will wait for a time when the host spider is vulnerable, such as during molting, and will attack and feed on it. This is true for the host spider's offspring as well, however Agyrodes will only feed on other spiders in some instances.[12]
It has been suggested that Argyrodes may have a mutualistic relationship with the host. The silver coloration of Argyrodes was found to attract more prey, particularly moths, to the host's web. This allows for larger prey items to be attracted for the host spider while Argyrodes is able to consume the smaller unwanted prey.[9] A common misconception about Argyrodes is that it steals prey from the host spider, but recent research has showed that Argyrodes rarely steals large prey items from the host, and only eats what the host spider typically does not want.[9] They have been noticed in complex Joro spider webs, for example.[13]
Kleptoparasitic spiders such as Argyrodes tend to prefer larger host webs over small ones, and multiple spiders often inhabit the same host web. Clustered webs were found to be preferred by Arygrodes, but only because these webs are generally larger than isolated ones.[14] There does not appear to be any preference for clustered webs over isolated webs when comparing the number of spiders per web area.[14] Kleptoparasitic spiders tend to spend much of their time on the outskirts of the host web, using this area as a safe place outside of the host spiders typical monitoring range. In addition to stealing food from the host web, dewdrop spiders are also known to use the host web as a location for mating as well as a place to hang their egg sacs.[14]
Species
As of May2020[update] it contains ninety-three species and five subspecies, found in Asia, South America, North America, Oceania, Africa, the Caribbean, on the Canary Islands, and Saint Helena:[4]
Theridiidae, also known as the tangle-web spiders, cobweb spiders and comb-footed spiders, is a large family of araneomorph spiders first described by Carl Jakob Sundevall in 1833. This diverse, globally distributed family includes over 3,000 species in 124 genera, and is the most common arthropod found in human dwellings throughout the world.
Achaearanea is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Embrik Strand in 1929.
Theridiosoma is a genus of ray spiders that was first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1879. They use their web as a high speed slingshot to actively hunt for prey.
The spider genus Steatoda, in the family Theridiidae, includes about 120 recognized species, distributed around the world. One common name is cupboard spider, for many species build their webs in dark, sheltered, undisturbed places around the house or garden, in sheds and garages, under garden, compost bins, and the like. Signs of the cupboard spider include small white spots of spider droppings, like small splashes of paint, on the floor underneath the web.
Chrysso is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1882.
Enoplognatha is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by P. Pavesi in 1880. They have both a large colulus and a subspherical abdomen. Males usually have enlarged chelicerae. It is considered a senior synonym of Symopagia.
Tetragnatha is a genus of long-jawed orb-weavers found all over the world. It was first described by Pierre André Latreille in 1804, and it contains hundreds of species. Most occur in the tropics and subtropics, and many can run over water. They are commonly called stretch spiders in reference to their elongated body form and their ability to hide on blades of grass or similar elongated substrates by stretching their front legs forward and the others behind them. The name Tetragnatha is derived from Greek, tetra- a numerical prefix referring to four and gnatha meaning "jaw". Evolution to cursorial behavior occurred long ago in a few different species, the most studied being those found on the Hawaiian islands. One of the biggest and most common species is T. extensa, which has a holarctic distribution. It can be found near lakes, river banks or swamps. Large numbers of individuals can often be found in reeds, tall grass, and around minor trees and shrubs.
Erigone is a genus of dwarf spiders that was first described by Jean Victoire Audouin in 1826. They are carnivorous, preying on small insects such as Psylla and flies. One of the distinctive characters for this genus is the presence of teeth bordering the carapace.
Ariamnes is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Tamerlan Thorell in 1869. Some species have greatly elongated abdomens, making them resemble a twig.
Euryopis is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Anton Menge in 1868.
Dipoena is a genus of tangle-web spiders that was first described by Tamerlan Thorell in 1869.
Phoroncidia is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by J. O. Westwood in 1835.
Faiditus is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Eugen von Keyserling in 1884.
Neospintharus is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by H. Exline in 1950. It was synonymized with Argyrodes in 1962, but revalidated in 2004.
Rhomphaea is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Ludwig Carl Christian Koch in 1872.
1 2 Levi, H. W.; Levi, L. R. (1962). "The genera of the spider family Theridiidae". Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology. 127: 16.
↑ Levi, H. W. (1972). "Taxonomic-nomenclatural notes on misplaced theridiid spiders (Araneae: Theridiidae), with observations on Anelosimus". Transactions of the American Microscopical Society. 91: 534.
Guarisco, Hank (October 1999). "Distributional Status and Natural History Observations of the Genus Argyrodes (Araenae: Theridiidae) in Kansas". Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science. 102 (3–4): 138–141. doi:10.2307/3627875. JSTOR3627875.
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