| Pherecydes | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Pherecydes tuberculatus | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Thomisidae |
| Genus: | Pherecydes O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1883 [1] |
| Type species | |
| P. tuberculatus O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1883 | |
| Species | |
8, see text | |
Pherecydes is a genus of African crab spiders first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1883. [2]
As of April 2019 [update] it contains eight species: [1]
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.
Hersilia, also known as long-spinnered bark spiders and two-tailed spiders, is a genus of tree trunk spiders that was first described by Jean Victoire Audouin in 1826. Their nicknames are a reference to their greatly enlarged spinnerets.
Peucetia is a genus of lynx spiders that is found worldwide.
Runcinia is a genus of crab spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1875. The former R. elongata is a synonym of Thomisus elongatus.
Thomisus is a genus of crab spiders with around 150 species described. The genus includes species that vary widely in their ecology, with some that ambush predators that feed on insects visiting flowers. Like several other genera in the family Thomisidae, they are sometimes referred to as flower crab spiders, from their crab-like motion and their way of holding their front legs, reminiscent of a crab spreading its claws as a threat.
Tibellus is a genus of slender crab spiders described by Simon in 1875, belonging to the order Araneae, family Philodromidae. Species of this genus are present in Eurasia, Africa, Americas and Australia.
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.
Penestomus is a genus of African araneomorph spiders in the family Penestomidae, and was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1902. The genus was formerly included in the family Eresidae, but was elevated to its own family in 2010. It is now considered closer to Zodariidae.
Seothyra, commonly known as the buckspoor spiders, buck spoor spiders or just spoor spiders, belong to a sand-dwelling, burrowing genus of araneomorph spiders in the family Eresidae. The 13 species are endemic to the arid, sandy flats and semistabilized red dunes of southern Africa. They are sexually dimorphic. The tiny males, which are seldom seen, imitate sugar ants or velvet ants in their appearance and habits, while the females hide in and hunt from their characteristic burrows. They are thermophilous, with males as well as females being most active on hot days.
Holopelus is a genus of crab spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1886.
Monaeses is a genus of crab spiders in the family Thomisidae, containing twenty seven species.
Tyrotama is a genus of African tree trunk spiders that was first described by S. H. Foord & A. S. Dippenaar-Schoeman in 2005.
Cladomelea is a genus of African orb-weaver spiders first described by Eugène Simon in 1895. Adult females of the genus are bolas spiders, capturing their prey with one or more sticky drops at the end of a single line of silk rather than in a web. Males and juvenile females capture their prey directly with their legs.
Heriaeus is a genus of crab spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1875.
Diores is a genus of spiders in the family Zodariidae.
Seothyra fasciata, one of the buck spoor spiders, is a sand-dwelling species of Eresidae. It is native to southern Africa.
Mystaria is a genus of African crab spiders first described by Eugène Simon in 1895.