Pholcus

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Pholcus
Pholcus.phalangioides.6905.jpg
Pholcus phalangioides
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Pholcidae
Genus: Pholcus
Walckenaer, 1805
Species

P. nagasakiensis
P. okinawaensis
P. phalangioides
P. opilionides
 many more

Contents

Diversity
375 species

Pholcus is a genus of spiders in the family Pholcidae, with 375 described species as of January 2023. [1]

It includes the cellar spider P. phalangioides , often called the "daddy longlegs". [2] This may cause confusion because the name "daddy longlegs" is also applied to two other unrelated arthropods: the harvestman and the crane fly.

Description

Pholcus, like Pholcidae in general, have extremely long and thin legs. [3] The genus can be distinguished from other pholcid genera by its large size (body length >4 mm), eight eyes, evenly domed prosoma (lacking a median furrow or pit) and cylindrical opisthosoma (longer than it is high). [4]

Habitat

In the wild, Pholcus live in environments such as caves, under rocks, forest shrubs and deep limestone cracks. Synanthropic species such as P. phalangioides live in and around buildings and other disturbed habitats. [5]

Species

Identification resources

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References

  1. ↑ "Gen. Pholcus Walckenaer, 1805". World Spider Catalog. Retrieved 18 October 2021.
  2. ↑ "Species Pholcus phalangioides - Longbodied Cellar Spider". bugguide.net. Retrieved 2022-09-16.
  3. ↑ "araneae - Key to families". araneae.nmbe.ch. Retrieved 2022-08-08.
  4. ↑ "araneae - Pholcidae". araneae.nmbe.ch. Retrieved 2022-08-08.
  5. ↑ "Genus Pholcus". bugguide.net. Retrieved 2022-09-16.
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