Oonopidae, also known as goblin spiders, is a family of spiders consisting of over 1,600 described species in about 113 genera worldwide, with total species diversity estimated at 2000 to 2500 species. The type genus of the family is OonopsKeyserling, 1835.
Unicorn ("one horn", in Latin) is a genus of goblin spiders from South America, containing seven species that occur predominantly in high elevation, semi-desert regions of Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina. Individuals are relatively large for goblin spiders, measuring up to 3.0 mm (0.12 in) in body length. The genus name refers to a characteristic pointed projection between the eyes and jaws of males. In at least one species, broken-off tips of the male pedipalps have been found within the genitalia of females, postulated as a means of sperm competition. Unicorn possesses several traits that suggest it is a relatively "primitive" member of the Oonopidae, and is classified with other similar, soft-bodied goblin spiders in the subfamily Sulsulinae.
Anasaitis canosus, previously of the genus Corythalia, is a small jumping spider that can typically be found atop leaf-litter or man-made structures such as fences and exterior walls. This species is more commonly known as the twin-flagged jumping spider due to the two pennant shaped markings on the dorsal side of the cephalothorax. Typical of the genus Anasaitis, this species has iridescent setae ("scales") which may appear white, green or pink which create the "flags" as well as patches on the male pedipalps used in courtship and intraspecific signaling. This species is roughly 5 to 6 mm in length. A. canosus ranges from Mexico to South Carolina along the Gulf of Mexico.
Triaeris stenaspis is a species of spider in the family Oonopidae, with a pantropical distribution. It is also found in Iran and has been introduced into Europe. A very small spider, with a maximum body length of under 2 mm (0.08 in), it has been shown to prey successfully on springtails. Only females have ever been found, and the species may be parthenogenetic, being able to produce female offspring from unfertilized eggs.
Trogloraptor is a genus of large spiders found in the caves of southwestern Oregon. It is the sole genus in the family Trogloraptoridae, and includes only one species, Trogloraptor marchingtoni. These spiders are predominantly yellow-brown in color with a maximum leg span of 3 in (7.6 cm). They are remarkable for having hook-like claws on the raptorial last segments of their legs.
Predatoroonops is a genus of goblin spiders endemic to the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. The genus is characterized by the extremely modified male chelicerae and long pairs of ventral spines. It is the first fully revised endemic Brazilian genus of spiders, uncovered in 2012 after two and a half years of research at São Paulo's Instituto Butantan.
Mysmena wawuensis is a species of spider found in China. It grows to 0.75 millimetres long. It is named after the Wawu Mountain National Forest Park in Sichuan Province in southwestern China where it was discovered and first described in 2013 by Yucheng Lin and Shuqiang Li. It was collected from the leaf litter at an altitude of 1,929 metres (6,329 ft) and is only known from the type locality.
Dalmasula is a genus of goblin spiders containing five species occurring in Namibia and South Africa. Males range from 1.7–2.8 mm in length, females 2.2–3.1 mm. The cephalothorax is orange or yellow, and the abdomen is white.
Aprusia veddah, is a species of oonopid spider of the genus Aprusia. It is endemic to Sri Lanka.
Thiratoscirtus obudu is a species of jumping spider in the genus Thiratoscirtus that lives in Nigeria. The species was first described in 2011 by Wanda Wesołowska and Russell-Smith. The holotype was found at an altitude of 1,900 m (6,200 ft) above sea level. on Obudu Plateau, Cross River State, after which it is named. Only the male has been described. It is a medium-sized spider, with a wider cephalothorax that is between 2.7 and 2.8 mm long and a thinner abdomen that is 2.2 and 2.4 mm in length, both oval in shape. The mouthparts include robust chelicerae and a short fang. It can be distinguished from other spiders in the genus by its copulatory organs. It has a small pedipalp with a rounded palpal bulb and a small spike on its palpal tibia called a tibial apophysis The apophysis is smaller than that found on other species.
Pseudomogrus logunovi is a species of jumping spider in the genus Pseudomogrus that lives in United Arab Emirates. The species was first defined by Wanda Wesołowska and Antonius van Harten in 2010. They originally placed it in the genus Yllenus, but it was moved to the new genus Logunyllus in 2016, and then to its present designation in 2019. The spider is small, with a cephalothorax that is between 1.5 and 2.0 mm long and an abdomen between 1.6 and 2.2 mm long. The female is larger than the male. The female can be distinguished by its plain brown carapace, in comparison with the male that has two white stripes on its darker surface. Both have brown patches on their yellow legs. The spider can be identified by its copulatory organs. The male has a straight spike on the tibia of its pedipalps, or tibial apophysis, a long embolus with a narrow accompanying terminal apophysis and a small tegulum. The female is hard to distinguish but has shorter insemination ducts than related species.
Euophrys cochlea is a species of jumping spider in the genus Euophrys that is endemic to South Africa. The species was first described in 2014 by Wanda Wesołowska, Galina Azarkina and Anthony Russell-Smith. It is a medium-sized brown spider, with a body that consists of a cephalothorax that is between 1.7 and 2.4 mm long and an abdomen between 1.7 and 2.9 mm (0.11 in) long. The cephalothorax has a dark brown carapace, or topside. The spider's eye field is darker, with black rings around the eyes but marked with a white patch. The female has a yellowish-brown abdomen while the male is a darker brown. While the female has light brown to yellow legs, the male's legs whitish-yellow or yellowish-orange. The spider is most easily differentiated from others species in the genus by its screw-like embolus, part of the male's copulatory organs. This is recalled in the species name, the Latin word for screw.
Euophrys griswaldi is a species of jumping spider in the genus Euophrys that is endemic to South Africa. The species was first described in 2014 by Wanda Wesołowska, Galina Azarkina and Anthony Russell-Smith. It is a very small brown spider, with a body that consists of a cephalothorax that is typically 1.6 mm (0.06 in) long and an abdomen that is typically 1.4 mm (0.06 in) long. The cephalothorax has a darker carapace, or topside and a brown underside, or sternum, while the abdomen is reversed, Its eye field is even darker, nearly black. A hairless scutum covers much of the abdomen. The copulatory organs are also unique amongst spiders in the genus, particularly the long thin embolus on the palpal bulb of the male. The female has not been described.
Euophrys limpopo is a species of jumping spider in the genus Euophrys that is endemic to South Africa. The species was first described in 2014 by Wanda Wesołowska, Galina Azarkina and Anthony Russell-Smith. It is a very small brown spider, with a body that consists of a cephalothorax that is typically 1.1 mm (0.04 in) long and an abdomen that is typically 1.2 mm (0.05 in) long. The cephalothorax has a darker carapace, or topside, and a lighter sternum, or underside, while the abdomen is reversed. Its eye field is even darker, nearly black. A hairless scutum covers much of the abdomen. The copulatory organs are unique amongst spiders in the genus, particularly the long thin embolus on the palpal bulb of the male. The female has not been described.
Zephyrarchaea marki, the Cape Le Grand assassin spider, is a species of spider in the family Archaeidae, commonly known as the assassin spiders. Known only from Cape Le Grand National Park in Western Australia, the species was first described by Michael G. Rix and Mark Harvey in 2012. It is named after Mark Wojcieszek, who helped collect the initial specimens of this species. Z. marki is a small species of spider, with a total length of 2.77–2.79 mm (0.109–0.110 in) in adult males. In adult males, the cephalothorax is dark reddish-brown and the abdomen is mottled grey-brown and beige. The legs are tan brown with darker ring-like markings. The appearance of the female is unknown. The species is known to inhabit elevated leaf litter in a dense coastal thickets of Banksia speciosa. It has not yet been evaluated and assigned a conservation status by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. However, the species is endemic to a very small range and its only known population may be threatened by fire, dieback disease affecting Banksia, and climate change.
Pachyballus miniscutulus is a species of jumping spider that is native to Ivory Coast and South Africa. It lives in open grassland and in vegetation near to streams. A very small spider, it has a cephalothorax that is ranges from 1 to 1.3 mm long and an abdomen that is between 1.7 and 1.9 mm long. The spider is generally dark brown on top. The bottom of its cephalothorax is yellowish-brown and its abdomen is grey-brown and has a distinctive scutum. This scutum is referenced in the species name, which is derived from the Latin words that mean "small shield". The spider has a dark brown clypeus and yellowish-brown spinnerets. Apart from the scutum, the spider can be identified by its copulatory organs. The male has a palpal bulb that has bulges that extend below its cymbium and the female has a heart-shaped epigyne that contains a spade-like or circular section and longer insemination ducts than Pachyballus mombasensis. A member of the genus Pachyballus, the species was first described in 2020 by Wanda Wesołowska, Galina Azarkina and Konrad Wiśniewski.
Stenaelurillus albopunctatus is a species of jumping spider in the genus Stenaelurillus that lives in Kenya. It was first described in 1949 by Ludovico di Caporiacco. The spider is medium-sized, with a cephalothorax between 2.24 and 23.55 mm long and abdomen between 2.38 and 3.92 mm long. It has two white stripes on its carapace and white speckles or spots on its abdomen. The female is generally lighter than the male. For example, the female has a brown and yellow carapace, which in the male is brown or black. The female clypeus and legs are yellow, while on the male they are brown. Otherwise, the colouration is similar to many other species in the genus. It is this similarity that led to the species Stenaelurillus guttiger being recognised as a member of the genus. The male has a spatula-like appendage at the front of its yellow pedipalps and a short thick embolus. The female has copulatory openings positioned very closely together and short insemination ducts.
Shuqiang Li is a Chinese arachnologist and a professor at the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Li is best known for his work with spiders and has described hundreds of new species and many genera. He is Editor in Chief of the journal Zoological Systematics.
Rhenefictus wandae is a species of jumping spider in the genus Rhenefictus that lives in China and Vietnam. First described in 2021 by Cheng Wang and Shuqiang Li, it was initially allocated to the genus Rhene. In 2022, the species was acknowledged as the same as Rhenefictus tropicus and the two were synonymised under the current name. It is the type species of the genus Rhenefictus. Only the male has been described. The spider is small, with a dark red or dark brown carapace between 2.35 and 2.4 mm long and a brown abdomen between 2.4 and 2.98 mm long. The base of the abdomen is grey-yellow. The spider has a distinctive embolus on its palpal bulb that is coiled and whip-like, terminating in a pointed tip.
Pancorius wesolowskae is a species of jumping spider in the genus Pancorius that lives in China. The species was first described in 2020 by Wei-Hang Wang and Cheng Wang. The spider is large, measuring between 6.3 and 7.93 mm in overall length. The carapace is dark brown and the opisthosoma dark grey with a pattern of light and dark. The female is larger than the male but otherwise very similar in colouration. The female spider is similar to Pancorius wangdicus but differs in have slit-shaped copulatory openings compared to the other species. The male has a blunter and shorter retrolateral tibial apophysis than the related Pancorius cadus.
