Cithaeronidae

Family of spiders

Cithaeronidae
Cithaeron praedonius
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Cithaeronidae
Simon, 1893
Genera
  • Cithaeron O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872
  • Inthaeron Platnick, 1991
Diversity
2 genera, 11 species

Cithaeronidae is a small family of araneomorph spiders first described by Simon in 1893[1] Female Cithaeron are about 5 to 7 millimetres (0.20 to 0.28 in) long, males about 4 millimetres (0.16 in).[2]

They are pale yellowish, fast-moving spiders that actively hunt at night and rest during the day, building silken retreats below rocks.[3] They prefer very hot, dry stony places.[2]

Distribution

While Inthaeron occurs only in India, members of the genus Cithaeron are found in Africa, India and parts of Eurasia. Three adult females of C. praedonius were found in Teresina, Piauí, Brazil. As they were found in and near human housings, they presumably were accidentally introduced.[3] This is probably also the case for finds in the Northern Territory of Australia.

Another population of C. praedonius has been discovered in Florida U.S.A., with reports of a stable breeding population.(Pers. comm. Joseph Stiles)

Genera and Species

This section lists all described species accepted by the World Spider Catalog as of December 2020[update]:[4]

Cithaeron O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872

  • C. contentum Jocqué & Russell-Smith, 2011 — South Africa
  • C. delimbatus Strand, 1906 — East Africa
  • C. dippenaarae Bosmans & Van Keer, 2015 — Morocco
  • C. indicus Platnick & Gajbe, 1994 — India
  • C. jocqueorum Platnick, 1991 — Ivory Coast
  • C. praedonius O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872 (type) — North Africa, Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Middle East to India, Malaysia. Introduced to USA, Cuba, Brazil, Australia (Northern Territory)
  • C. reimoseri Platnick, 1991 — Eritrea, Brazil (probably introduced)

Inthaeron Platnick, 1991

  • I. longipes (Gravely, 1931) — India
  • I. rossi Platnick, 1991 (type) — India

References

  1. ^ Simon, E. (1893). Histoire naturelle das araignées.
  2. ^ a b Murphy, Frances; Murphy, John (2000). "An Introduction to the Spiders of South East Asia". Malaysian Nature Society, Kuala Lumpur.
  3. ^ a b Carvalho, L.S.; Bonaldo, A. B.; Brescovit, A. D. (2007). "The first record of the family Cithaeronidae (Araneae, Gnaphosoidea) to the new world" (PDF). Revista Brasileira de Zoologia. 24 (2): 512–514. doi:10.1590/S0101-81752007000200034.
  4. ^ "Family: Cithaeronidae Simon,1893". World Spider Catalog Version 20.0. Natural History Museum Bern. 2021. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2021-01-08.
  • Platnick, N.I. (2002): A revision of the Australasian ground spiders of the families Ammoxenidae, Cithaeronidae, Gallieniellidae, and Trochanteriidae (Araneae, Gnaphosoidea). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 271. PDF (26Mb) — Abstract

External links

  • Edwards, G.B. & Stiles, J.(2011): The first North American records of the synanthropic spider.
  • Hi-Res Photographs of Cithaeron praedonius[permanent dead link]
Wikispecies has information related to Cithaeronidae.
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Extant Araneae families
Suborder Mesothelae
  • Liphistiidae (segmented spiders)
  • Heptathelidae (segmented spiders)
Suborder Opisthothelae
Mygalomorphae
  • Actinopodidae (mouse spiders and relatives)
  • Antrodiaetidae (folding trapdoor spiders)
  • Atracidae (Australian funnel-web spiders)
  • Atypidae (atypical tarantulas or purseweb spiders)
  • Barychelidae (brushed trapdoor spiders)
  • Ctenizidae (cork-lid trapdoor spiders)
  • Cyrtaucheniidae (wafer trapdoor spiders)
  • Dipluridae (funnel-web tarantulas)
  • Euctenizidae
  • Halonoproctidae
  • Hexathelidae (funnel-webs or venomous funnel-web tarantulas)
  • Idiopidae
  • Macrothelidae
  • Mecicobothriidae (dwarf tarantulas)
  • Microstigmatidae
  • Migidae (tree trapdoor spiders)
  • Nemesiidae (funnel-web tarantulas)
  • Paratropididae (bald-legged spiders)
  • Porrhothelidae
  • Theraphosidae (true tarantulas)
Araneomorphae
Non-entelegynes
  • Archaeidae (pelican spiders)
  • Austrochilidae
  • Caponiidae
  • Diguetidae (coneweb spiders)
  • Drymusidae (false violin spiders)
  • Dysderidae (woodlouse hunters)
  • Filistatidae (crevice weaver spiders)
  • Gradungulidae (large-clawed spiders)
  • Huttoniidae
  • Hypochilidae (lampshade spiders)
  • Leptonetidae
  • Mecysmaucheniidae
  • Ochyroceratidae (midget ground weavers)
  • Oonopidae (goblin spiders)
  • Orsolobidae
  • Pacullidae
  • Palpimanidae (palp-footed spiders)
  • Periegopidae
  • Pholcidae (cellar spiders)
  • Plectreuridae
  • Scytodidae (spitting spiders)
  • Segestriidae (tube-dwelling spiders)
  • Sicariidae (violin spiders, assassin spiders)
  • Stenochilidae
  • Telemidae (long-legged cave spiders)
  • Tetrablemmidae (armored spiders)
  • Trogloraptoridae (Trogloraptor marchingtoni)
Entelegynae
Taxon identifiers
Cithaeronidae


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