Liphistiidae
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 Liphistius sp.
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Heptathela |
The spider family Liphistiidae comprises 5 genera and 87 species [1]. They are among the most primitive living spiders, belonging to the suborder Mesothelae. They are rarely seen tube-dwelling spiders from Southeast Asia, China, and Japan that construct rudimentary trap-doors, characterized by their downward pointing, daggerlike chelicerae without venom glands[1], and by having a segmented series of plates on the upper surface of their abdomens. Some make silk trip-lines radiating away from the burrow entrance. They are active at night and live for many years, and females molt aver maturity. Adult males wander in search for females, which rarely leave their burrows. The respiratory system consists only of booklungs, which could be a reason why these spiders show a quite low level of activity.[2]
In caves in Malaysia, [2], three different species of Liphistius are known, and each species is endemic to just one or two caves. The most well known of them is Liphistius batuensis, which is found in Batu Caves. In Japan, the Kimura-gumo (Heptathela kimurai) is rather well-known.
Although they are Orthognatha (having downward pointing chelicerae), like the Mygalomorphae, there is no close relationship between those two. It is thought that the common ancestor of all spiders was orthognath, and that in the Opisthothelae, comprising of Mygalomorphae (mostly tarantulas) and Araneomorphae (all other spiders), only the Araneomorphae changed their alignment of chelicerae, while the mygalomorphs retained this symplesiomorph feature.[2]
[edit] Genera
- Heptathela Kishida, 1923 (Vietnam, Japan, China)
- Liphistius Schiödte, 1849 (Southeast Asia)
- Nanthela Haupt, 2003 (Hong Kong, Vietnam)
- Ryuthela Haupt, 1983 (Ryukyu Islands, Okinawa)
- Songthela Ono, 2000 (China)
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Haupt, J. (2004). The Mesothelae - a monograph of an exceptional group of spiders (Araneae: Mesothelae). Zoologica 154:8 ISSN 0044-5088, ISBN 3-510-55041-2 (Abstract)
- ^ a b Coddington, J.A. & Levi, H.W. (1991). Systematics and Evolution of Spiders (Araneae). Annu. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 22:565-592
- Ono, H. (1999) Spiders of the genus Heptathela (Araneae, Liphistiidae) from Vietnam, with notes on their natural history. The Journal of Arachnology 27(1): 37-43. PDF
