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.
Jumping spiders are a group of spiders that constitute the family Salticidae. As of 2019, this family contained over 600 described genera and over 6,000 described species, making it the largest family of spiders at 13% of all species. Jumping spiders have some of the best vision among arthropods and use it in courtship, hunting, and navigation. Although they normally move unobtrusively and fairly slowly, most species are capable of very agile jumps, notably when hunting, but sometimes in response to sudden threats or crossing long gaps. Both their book lungs and tracheal system are well-developed, and they use both systems. Jumping spiders are generally recognized by their eye pattern. All jumping spiders have four pairs of eyes, with the anterior median pair being particularly large.
Nursery web spiders (Pisauridae) is a family of araneomorph spiders first described by Eugène Simon in 1890. They resemble wolf spiders (Lycosidae) except for several key differences. Wolf spiders have two very prominent eyes in addition to the other six, while a nursery web spider's eyes are all about the same size. Additionally, female nursery web spiders carry their egg sacs with their jaws and pedipalps instead of attaching them to their spinnerets as wolf spiders do. When the eggs are about to hatch, a female spider builds a nursery "tent", places her egg sac inside, and stands guard outside, hence the family's common name. Like the wolf spiders, however, the nursery web spiders are roaming hunters that don't use webs for catching prey.
Lynx spider (Oxyopidae) is a family of araneomorph spiders first described by Tamerlan Thorell in 1870. Most species make little use of webs, instead spending their lives as hunting spiders on plants. Many species frequent flowers in particular, ambushing pollinators, much as crab spiders do. They tend to tolerate members of their own species more than most spiders do, and at least one species has been identified as exhibiting social behaviour.
The Pholcidae are a family of araneomorph spiders. The family contains over 1,800 individual species of pholcids, including those commonly known as cellar spider, daddy long-legs spider, carpenter spider, daddy long-legger, vibrating spider, gyrating spider, long daddy, and skull spider. The family, first described by Carl Ludwig Koch in 1850, is divided into 94 genera.
The Agelenidae are a large family of spiders in the suborder Araneomorphae. Well-known examples include the common "grass spiders" of the genus Agelenopsis. Nearly all Agelenidae are harmless to humans, but the bite of the hobo spider may be medically significant, and some evidence suggests it might cause necrotic lesions, but the matter remains subject to debate. The most widely accepted common name for members of the family is funnel weaver.
Dolomedes is a genus of large spiders of the family Pisauridae. They are also known as fishing spiders, raft spiders, dock spiders or wharf spiders. Almost all Dolomedes species are semiaquatic, with the exception of the tree-dwelling D. albineus of the southeastern United States. Many species have a striking pale stripe down each side of the body.
Actinopodidae is a family of mygalomorph orb weaver spiders found in mainland Australia and South America usually in open forest. Species are most common in Queensland, Australia. It includes mouse spiders, whose bites, though rare, are considered medically significant and potentially dangerous.
Cosmophasis is a genus of spiders in the family Salticidae. Some species occur in Africa, while most are found in Southeast Asia, down to Australia. Although most species more or less mimic ants, there are also colorful species that follow a different strategy.
Ambush predators or sit-and-wait predators are carnivorous animals that capture or trap prey via stealth, luring or by strategies utilizing an element of surprise. Unlike pursuit predators, who chase to capture prey using sheer speed or endurance, ambush predators avoid fatigue by staying in concealment, waiting patiently for the prey to get near, before launching a sudden overwhelming attack that quickly incapacitates and captures the prey.
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.
Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. Currently, 1,010 species have been identified. 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.
Thomisus onustus is a crab spider belonging to the genus Thomisus. These spiders are found across Europe, North Africa, and parts of the Middle East and Asia. T. onustus reside in flowers in lowland vegetation. Females are distinguished by their larger size and ability to change color between white, yellow, and pink as a means of matching flower color. This cryptic mimicry allows them to both evade predators and enhance insect prey capture abilities. Males are smaller, more slender, and drab in coloration, usually green or brown. T. onustus is also distinguished from other relatives by its distinct life cycle patterns in which spiderlings emerge in either late summer or early spring. Furthermore, T. onustus have developed a mutualistic relationship with host plants where spiders feed on and/or deter harmful florivores while benefiting from the plant's supply of pollen and nectar, which T. onustus spiders are able to use as food sources, especially during periods of low insect prey abundance.
Grevillea albiflora, commonly known as white spider flower, is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to inland eastern Australia. It is a shrub or small tree with pinnatisect leaves with linear lobes, and white to creamy-green flowers.
Oxyopes lineatus is a species of spider in the family Oxyopidae, the so-called lynx spiders.
Atrax yorkmainorum is a venomous species of Australian funnel-web spider belonging to the Atracidae family and is found in forests in the vicinity of Canberra and south-eastern New South Wales. The genus Atrax was first documented in 1877 and the Atrax yorkmainorum species was first described in 2010.
Stenocarpus angustifolius is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to Queensland. It is a shrub or small tree with narrow lance-shaped adult leaves, groups of creamy white flowers and cylindrical follicles.
Grevillea anethifolia, commonly known as spiny cream spider flower, is a species of flowering plant in the family Proteaceae and is endemic to continental Australia. It is an erect shrub with hairy branchlets, lobed leaves, the lobes sharply pointed, and white to pale yellow or cream-coloured flowers.
Thomisus spectabilis, also known as the white crab spider or Australian crab spider, is a small spider found in Australia and far east Asia.
Australomisidia cruentata, one of the crab spiders, is a small spider found in Australia. The body length of the female is up to 5 mm, the male 3 mm. An ambush predator, often seen on flowers in the Pultenaea group of egg and bacon plants, belonging to the pea family. The egg sac is also laid on the flowers. Petals being fastened with silk in a chamber. The spider stays with the eggs, probably still hunting from the entrance of the retreat, with the egg sac nearby. Prey is small flying insects. The genus Australomisidia was created in 2014, the word being a combination of Australia and Thomisidae, the crab spiders.
