The Thomisidae are a family of spiders, including about 170 genera and over 2,100 species. The common name crab spider is often linked to species in this family, but is also applied loosely to many other families of spiders. Many members of this family are also known as flower spiders or flower crab spiders.
The Mesothelae are a suborder of spiders that includes a single extant family, Liphistiidae, and a number of extinct families. This suborder is thought to form the sister group to all other living spiders, and to retain ancestral characters, such as a segmented abdomen with spinnerets in the middle and two pairs of book lungs. Members of Liphistiidae are medium to large spiders with eight eyes grouped on a tubercle. They are found only in China, Japan, and southeast Asia. The oldest known Mesothelae spiders are known from the Carboniferous, over 300 million years ago.
The family Cyrtaucheniidae, known as wafer-lid trapdoor spiders, are a widespread family of Mygalomorphae spiders.
Idiopidae, also known as armored trapdoor spiders, is a family of mygalomorph spiders first described by Eugène Simon in 1889. They have a large body similar to tarantulas.
Barychelidae, also known as brushed trapdoor spiders, is a spider family with about 300 species in 42 genera.
Migidae, also known as tree trapdoor spiders, is a family of spiders with about 100 species in eleven genera. They are small to large spiders with little to no hair and build burrows with a trapdoor. Some species live in tree fern stems. They have a Gondwanan distribution, found almost exclusively on the Southern Hemisphere, occurring in South America, Africa, Madagascar, Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia.
Stegodyphus is a genus of velvet spiders that was first described by Eugène Simon in 1873. They are distributed from Africa to Europe and Asia, with one species found in Brazil. The name is derived from Ancient Greek στέγω, meaning "covered".
Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. As of August 2022, 1,040 species have been identified, with 156 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although many other members of the same infraorder (Mygalomorphae) are commonly referred to as "tarantulas" or "false tarantulas". Some of the more common species have become popular in the exotic pet trade. Many New World species kept as pets have setae known as urticating hairs that can cause irritation to the skin, and in extreme cases, cause damage to the eyes.
Idiops is a genus of armored trapdoor spiders that was first described by Josef Anton Maximilian Perty in 1833. It is the type genus of the spurred trapdoor spiders, Idiopidae. Idiops is also the most species-rich genus of the family, and is found at widely separated locations in the Neotropics, Afrotropics, Indomalaya and the Middle East. Females live in tubular burrows lined with a thick layer of white silk. These typically have a D-shaped lid that fits into the entrance like a cork, and some burrows have two entrances. The lid may consist of mud, moss or lichen, which is bound below by a thick layer of silk. As in all genera of this family, the anterior lateral eyes (ALE) are situated near the clypeal margin, far in front of the remaining six eyes, which are arranged in a tight group. The males which are smaller in size, wander about or occasionally live in burrows. Like other mygalomorphs, they are relatively large and long-lived. Forest clearance and agricultural practices that loosen the soil and enhance erosion, besides soil removal for brick making have been pointed out as serious threats to some Indian species. Species ranges are poorly known – in India for instance, most species are known only from their type localities.
Neocteniza is a genus of armored trapdoor spiders that was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1895. Originally placed with the Actinopodidae, it was moved to the Idiopidae in 1985.
Eusparassus is a genus of huntsman spiders, known as the stone huntsman spiders, it was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1903.
Chilobrachys is a genus of Asian tarantulas that was first described by Ferdinand Anton Franz Karsch in 1892. They are found in India, Myanmar, Malaysia, China, Vietnam, Thailand and Sri Lanka. They are usually medium or large-sized, and they can stridulate by using small spines present on the chelicerae.
Lyrognathus is a genus of Asian tarantulas that was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1895.
Eubrachycercus is a monotypic genus of East African brushed trapdoor spiders containing the single species, Eubrachycercus smithi. It was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1897, and has only been found in Somalia.
Sasonichus is a monotypic genus of Asian brushed trapdoor spiders containing the single species, Sasonichus sullivani. It was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1900, and has only been found in India. The species Sipalolasma arthrapophysis was briefly placed here before being moved to Sipalolasma in 1985.
Anemesia is a genus of Asian wafer trapdoor spiders that was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1895.
Citharognathus is a genus of Asian tarantulas that was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1895. As of August 2022 it contains two species: C. hosei and C. tongmianensis.
Phormingochilus is a genus of Indonesian tarantulas that was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1895. They are occasionally kept as exotic pets, and are known for moving in bursts of speed and being defensive when cornered.
Pasilobus is a genus of orb-weaver spiders first described by Eugène Simon in 1895.
Melognathus is a monotypic genus of southeast Asian tarantulas containing the single species, Melognathus dromeus. It was erected in 1917 for a holotype collected from a ship that visited southeast Asia. In 1985, the species was moved to Cyriopagopus because the autapomorphies were not considered significant enough to warrant a new genus. Opinions between biologists were split, some using the original name and some using Cyriopagopus. In a 2019 report, Gabriel and Sherwood pointed out that in addition to the differences in pedipalp morphology, the holotype exhibits leg features that indicate an arboreal species, while species of Cyriopagopus are largely terrestrial. The ambiguous location of the holotype has left room for speculation, but as of February 2022 the World Spider Catalog accepts this genus.
