Webs of theridiid spiders: construction, structure and evolution

Benjamin, Suresh P.; Zschokke, Samuel

doi:10.1046/j.1095-8312.2003.00110.x

Cited by 114 publications

(110 citation statements)

References 28 publications

(39 reference statements)

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“…10B). Hadrotarsines are wandering ant specialists, so they do not build a prey-catching web (Benjamin & Zschokke 2003). As a general attribute, theridiids (e.g., Latrodectus and Steatoda) build irregular webs, which may be considered the ancestral web-building pattern (state 0).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phylogenetic relationships of the comb-footed spider subfamily Spintharinae (Araneae, Araneoidea, Theridiidae), with generic diagnoses and a key to the genera

Durán-Barrón

Contreras‐Ramos²

2013

Zootaxa

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The monophyly of Spintharinae is supported in agreement with previous analysis of Theridiidae by Agnarsson and Arnedo et al. We study the relationships of the genera within Spintharinae. Fourteen species in the genera Chrosiothes, Episinus, Spintharus, Stemmops, and Thwaitesia constituted the ingroup, while five species from the genera Euryopis and Dipoena (Hadrotarsinae), as well as Latrodectus and Steatoda (Latrodectinae), served as outgroup taxa. The character matrix included 49 morphological characters. Parsimony analyses using several character weighting strategies supported the monophyly of Spintharinae with Stemmops as sister to a clade that includes the remaining ingroup taxa. Chrosiothes emerged as sister to Episinus + Spintharus + Thwaitesia which formed a polytomy. The equally weighted, successive weighted, and preferred implied weight topologies, were all logically consistent. A key to the genera of Spintharinae and diagnoses for each genus are given.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phylogenetic relationships of the comb-footed spider subfamily Spintharinae (Araneae, Araneoidea, Theridiidae), with generic diagnoses and a key to the genera

Durán-Barrón

Contreras‐Ramos²

2013

Zootaxa

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“…Mimetidae) [20]. These 'derived' araneoid webs are so highly transformed from the ancestral orbicular architecture that in the few cases in which the spider building behaviours have been studied [21][22][23], the stereotypical behavioural algorithms involved in orb web construction [9] are no longer identifiable as such. Furthermore, web architecture across Araneoidea is extraordinarily diverse, although still largely undocumented for the majority of species [20,[24][25][26].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tangled in a sparse spider web: single origin of orb weavers and their spinning work unravelled by denser taxonomic sampling

Lopardo²,

et al. 2011

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In order to study the tempo and the mode of spider orb web evolution and diversification, we conducted a phylogenetic analysis using six genetic markers along with a comprehensive taxon sample. The present analyses are the first to recover the monophyly of orb-weaving spiders based solely on DNA sequence data and an extensive taxon sample. We present the first dated orb weaver phylogeny. Our results suggest that orb weavers appeared by the Middle Triassic and underwent a rapid diversification during the end of the Triassic and Early Jurassic. By the second half of the Jurassic, most of the extant orb-weaving families and web designs were already present. The processes that may have given origin to this diversification of lineages and web architectures are discussed. A combination of biotic factors, such as key innovations in web design and silk composition, as well as abiotic environmental changes, may have played important roles in the diversification of orb weavers. Our analyses also show that increased taxon sampling density in both ingroups and outgroups greatly improves phylogenetic accuracy even when extensive data are missing. This effect is particularly important when addition of character data improves gene overlap.

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“…Benjamin and Zschokke (2003) have found in their research of webs built by this species that the webs remained in place for extended periods and were expanded and repaired, but no regular patterns of replacement were observed. Our study confirmed these findings.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Wrap attack of the spider Achaearanea tepidariorum (Araneae: Theridiidae) by preying on mealybugs Planococcus citri (Homoptera: Pseudococcidae)

Hajer¹,

Hrubá²

2006

J Ethol

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Predation by Achaearanea tepidariorum (Koch 1841) on mealybugs Planococcus citri (Risso 1813) is facilitated by the design of its web, which features a tangle of sticky gumfooted lines, and wrap attacks as well as the ability to handle the prey, whose body is covered with a waxy secretion, via silk. Crawling, i.e., wingless, mealybugs (in particular those in the nymphal stages and adult females and, to a lesser extent, winged males) are caught by means of the gumfooted lines, covered with globules of an adhesive secretion. The process of wrap attack and subsequent handling of the captured prey is a series of the following consecutive events: (1) confining and immobilising the mealybugs with sticky silk; (2) biting with chelicerae and paralyzing the prey with a toxin; (3) detaching the confined prey, attached to the tense threads, from the plant surface and catapulting it toward the central section of the web; (4) wrapping the catapulted prey in viscid silk emitted by the spinning apparatus; (5) transporting the wrapped prey to the central section of the web; (6) wrapping the prey in the central section of the web in nonsticky silk, whose tufts are present in this part of the web even before the attack; (7) filling the prey with digestive fluid; (8) sucking the prey empty; and (9) cleaning the chelicerae and mouth parts. The process of silk tuft wrapping was described for the first time. The described ability to hunt mealybugs implies the possibility of using A. tepidariorum spiders for biological control of these pests.

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Webs of theridiid spiders: construction, structure and evolution

Cited by 114 publications

References 28 publications

Phylogenetic relationships of the comb-footed spider subfamily Spintharinae (Araneae, Araneoidea, Theridiidae), with generic diagnoses and a key to the genera

Phylogenetic relationships of the comb-footed spider subfamily Spintharinae (Araneae, Araneoidea, Theridiidae), with generic diagnoses and a key to the genera

Tangled in a sparse spider web: single origin of orb weavers and their spinning work unravelled by denser taxonomic sampling

Wrap attack of the spider Achaearanea tepidariorum (Araneae: Theridiidae) by preying on mealybugs Planococcus citri (Homoptera: Pseudococcidae)

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