Huntsman spiders, members of the family Sparassidae, are known by this name because of their speed and mode of hunting. They also are called giant crab spiders because of their size and appearance. Larger species sometimes are referred to as wood spiders, because of their preference for woody places. In southern Africa the genus Palystes are known as rain spiders or lizard-eating spiders. Commonly they are confused with baboon spiders from the Mygalomorphae infraorder, which are not closely related.
Uloboridae is a family of nonvenomous spiders, known as cribellate orb weavers or hackled orb weavers. Their lack of venom glands is a secondarily evolved trait. Instead, they wrap their prey thoroughly in silk, cover it in regurgitated digestive enzymes, and then ingest the liquified body.
Philodromidae, also known as philodromid crab spiders and running crab spiders, is a family of araneomorph spiders first described by Tord Tamerlan Teodor Thorell in 1870. It contains over 600 species in thirty genera. Most are dull colored- brown, gray, yellowish or mottled with a leaf-like cardiac mark on the anterior dorsal abdomen, and seldom reach above 10 millimetres (0.39 in) long. None of the species build webs, but they do use silk for draglines and egg sacs.
Delena cancerides, the flat huntsman spider or social huntsman spider, is a large, brown huntsman spider native to Australia. It has been introduced to New Zealand, where it is sometimes known as the Avondale spider as they are commonly found in the suburb of Avondale, Auckland. This was the species used in the beginning of the 2002 movie Spider-Man, a part in Australian movie Napoleon and widely in Arachnophobia, and all films depict them as having a deadly venomous bite, but they are generally considered harmless to humans in real-life. It was first described by Charles Athanase Walckenaer in 1837.
Gasteracantha is a genus of orb-weaver spiders first named by Carl Jakob Sundevall in 1833. The females of most species are brightly colored with six prominent spines on their broad, hardened, shell-like abdomens. The name Gasteracantha is derived from the Greek gaster (γαστήρ), meaning "belly, abdomen", and akantha (άκανθα), meaning "thorn, spine". Spiny-backed orb-weavers are sometimes colloquially called "crab spiders" because of their shape, but they are not closely related to the true crab spiders. Other colloquial names for certain species include thorn spider, star spider, kite spider, or jewel spider.
The Antilles pinktoe tarantula, also known as the Martinique red tree spider or the Martinique pinktoe is popular as a spider pet because of its docile character and unique coloration.
Eresus, also called ladybird spiders, is a genus of velvet spiders that was first described by Charles Athanase Walckenaer in 1805. Members of the genus formerly called Eresus cinnaberinus or Eresus niger are now placed in one of three species: Eresus kollari, Eresus sandaliatus and Eresus moravicus.
Actinopodidae is a family of mygalomorph spiders found in Australia and South America. It includes mouse spiders, whose bites, though rare, are considered medically significant and potentially dangerous.
Phiale is a genus of jumping spiders that was first described by Carl Ludwig Koch in 1846. P. albovittata has been considered a junior synonym of Freya perelegans since 2006.
Delena is a genus of South Pacific huntsman spiders that was first described by Charles Athanase Walckenaer in 1837.
Porrhothele is a genus of South Pacific mygalomorph spiders in the Porrhothelidae family, and was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1892. Originally placed with the curtain web spiders, it was moved to the Hexathelidae in 1980, then to its own family in 2018.
The skeleton tarantula, Ephebopus murinus, is a species of spider belonging to the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas), sub-family Aviculariinae. A New World species, it is native to several South American countries. Its common name is derived from the skeleton-like markings on its legs.
Arkys, also known as triangular spider or ambush spider, is a genus of Australian araneomorph spiders in the Arkyidae family, first described by Charles Athanase Walckenaer in 1837. They are often small, with a triangular shaped abdomen, and can be found in Australia and some of its surrounding islands. They don't build webs, but can often be found on leaves and tips of flower heads. Their egg sacs are pinkish-orange and spherical, and are made late in the summer.
Arkys lancearius, the triangular spider, is a common Australian spider belonging to the family Arkyidae. It is an ambush hunter, commonly found resting on leaves and ferns or hanging from just a few threads of silk. The front two pairs of legs are large, suited for grabbing small insects, while the rear pairs of legs are much smaller.
Tychicus is a genus of huntsman spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1880.
Desis is a genus of intertidal spiders that was first described by Charles Athanase Walckenaer in 1837. It is found in Australasia, the Pacific, Japan, eastern and southern Africa, and India. They are truly marine spiders, living in the intertidal zone and only emerging at night on the ebb tide to hunt for invertebrates and small fish. In the day and during high tides, they hide in an air chamber sealed with silk.
Artema is a genus of cellar spiders that was first described by Charles Athanase Walckenaer in 1837.
Pisaurina is a genus of nursery web spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1898. It likes to live within vegetated areas such as meadows, bushes or tall grass, preferring warm or tropical areas to settle down and reproduce.
Tigrosa is a genus of spiders in the family Lycosidae, found in North America.
Sergiolus is a genus of ground spiders that was first described by Eugène Simon in 1892. They are 3.3 to 9 millimetres long.
