Metellina

Metellina
Metellina mengei
female
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Order:	Araneae
Infraorder:	Araneomorphae
Family:	Tetragnathidae
Genus:	Metellina Chamberlin & Ivie, 1941 [1]
Type species
Pachygnatha curtisi McCook, 1894
Species
See text.
Diversity [1]
16 species
Synonyms [1]
MenosiraChikuni, 1955

Metellina is a genus of tetragnathid spiders that occurs mostly in Eurasia, with two species found in North America. M. segmentata was introduced to Canada.

Some researchers consider this genus to belong to a distinct family, the Metidae.^{[ citation needed ]}

M. segmentata is probably the most abundant orb-weaving spider of Germany. ^[2]

Description

Metellina species have an abdomen longer than wide, usually without tubercles. The secondary eyes have a canoe-shaped tapetum. The posterior lateral eyes are located on a single tubercle. ^[3]

The epigynal plate is flat with posterior-facing copulatory openings. The fertilization ducts originate near the anterior area of the spermathecae with a mass of accessory glands near the copulatory ducts. The palpal patella has one macroseta. ^[3]

The genus is most similar to Meta . ^[3]

Life style

Metellina species are web dwellers that make their webs low in vegetation. ^[3]

Name

The genus name is an alteration of the related genus Meta .

Species

• 
  Metellina sp. from Belgium
• 
  Metellina sp. from Norway
• 
  M. merianae

As of October 2025 ^[update] , this genus includes sixteen species: ^[1]

• Metellina barreti (Kulczyński, 1899) – Madeira
• Metellina curtisi (McCook, 1894) – North America (type species)
• Metellina gertschi (Lessert, 1938) – DR Congo
• Metellina haddadi Marusik & Larsen, 2018 – South Africa
• Metellina kirgisica (Bakhvalov, 1974) – Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Central Asia, China
• Metellina longipalpis (Pavesi, 1883) – Ethiopia
• Metellina mengei (Blackwall, 1869) – Europe to Caucasus, Iran, Russia (Europe to Altai)
• Metellina merianae (Scopoli, 1763) – Europe, Caucasus, Turkey, Iran, Russia (Europe to Central Asia)
• Metellina merianopsis (Tullgren, 1910) – Tanzania
• Metellina mimetoides Chamberlin & Ivie, 1941 – North America
• Metellina minima (Denis, 1953) – Canary Islands
• Metellina orientalis (Spassky, 1932) – Turkey, Armenia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan
• Metellina ornata (Chikuni, 1955) – Russia (Far East), China, Korea, Japan
• Metellina segmentata (Clerck, 1757) – Europe, Morocco, Turkey, Israel, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to South Siberia), Kazakhstan, Iran, China, Japan. Introduced to Canada
• Metellina tangchao Lin & Yang, 2023 – China
• Metellina villiersi (Denis, 1955) – Guinea

References

1. "Genus Metellina". World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2 . Retrieved 2025-10-01.
2. Bellmann, H. (1997). Kosmos-Atlas Spinnentiere Europas. Kosmos.
3. Dippenaar-Schoeman, A.S.; Haddad, C.R.; Foord, S.H.; Lotz, L.N. (2023). The Tetragnathidae of South Africa. South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide. p. 28. doi:10.5281/zenodo.7513261.  This article incorporates text available under the CC BY 4.0 license.