''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family
Lycosidae
Wolf spiders are members of the family Lycosidae (). They are robust and agile hunters with excellent eyesight. They live mostly in solitude, hunt alone, and do not spin webs. Some are opportunistic hunters, pouncing upon prey as they find it or c ...
(wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely
Eurasia
Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago ...
n distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2 cm. ''Alopecosa'' females make a burrow in which they deposit their
egg
An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the a ...
sac. The female then stays in the burrow guarding the sac until the eggs hatch.
Taxonomy
The species in this genus have been traditionally grouped into sibling
species complex
In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...
es (groups) based on morphological characters, but, as morphology-based taxonomy can be unreliable, alternative methods have also been employed to identify species correctly. For example, differences in observed courtship and copulation behaviour have proved to be a useful tool for species identification and delimitation, particularly in cryptic species.
Molecular techniques have also been applied to reconstruct
phylogenetic relationship
In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...
s between some species.
Species
, the
World Spider Catalog
The World Spider Catalog (WSC) is an online searchable database concerned with spider taxonomy. It aims to list all accepted families, genera and species, as well as provide access to the related taxonomic literature. The WSC began as a series of ...
accepted the following species:
[
*'' Alopecosa accentuata'' (Latreille, 1817) – Europe
*'' Alopecosa aculeata'' (Clerck, 1757) – North America, Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to Far East), Iran, Central Asia, China, Japan
*'' Alopecosa akkolka'' Marusik, 1995 – Kazakhstan, China
*'']Alopecosa albofasciata
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' (Brullé, 1832) – Mediterranean to Central Asia
*'' Alopecosa albonotata'' (Schmidt, 1895) – Russia (Middle Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa albostriata'' (Grube, 1861) – Russia (West to East Siberia, Far East)
*'' Alopecosa albovittata'' (Schmidt, 1895) – Russia (Middle Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa alpicola'' (Simon, 1876) – Spain, France, Italy, Russia (Europe), China, Caucasus?, Kazakhstan?
*''Alopecosa andesiana
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' (Berland, 1913) – Ecuador
*''Alopecosa artenarensis
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' Wunderlich, 1992 – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa atis'' Caporiacco, 1949 – Libya
*'' Alopecosa auripilosa'' (Schenkel, 1953) – Russia (Far East), China, Korea
*'' Alopecosa aurita'' Chen, Song & Kim, 2001 – China
*'' Alopecosa ayubaevorum'' Fomichev & Logunov, 2015 – Russia (Altai)
*''Alopecosa azsheganovae
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' Esyunin, 1996 – Russia (Europe to South Siberia)
*''Alopecosa balinensis
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' (Giltay, 1935) – Indonesia (Bali)
*''Alopecosa beckeri
''Alopecosa beckeri'' is a species of wolf spider found in Ukraine and south European Russia
See also
* List of Lycosidae species
:''See also the List of Lycosidae genera, sorted by subfamilies.''
This page lists all described species of the ...
'' (Thorell, 1875) – Ukraine
*''Alopecosa camerunensis
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' Roewer, 1960 – Cameroon
*''Alopecosa canaricola
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' Schmidt, 1982 – Canary Is.
*''Alopecosa cedroensis
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' Wunderlich, 1992 – Canary Is.
*''Alopecosa chagyabensis
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' Hu & Li, 1987 – China
*''Alopecosa cinnameopilosa
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' (Schenkel, 1963) – Kazakhstan, Russia (Central Asia to Far East), China, Korea, Japan
*'' Alopecosa cronebergi'' (Thorell, 1875) – Slovakia, Ukraine, Russia (Europe), Caucasus, Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa cuneata'' (Clerck, 1757) – Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to Far East), Kazakhstan, China
*'' Alopecosa cursor'' (Hahn, 1831) – Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to South Siberia), Iran, Central Asia, China
*'' Alopecosa cursorioides'' Charitonov, 1969 – Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan
*'' Alopecosa curtohirta'' Tang, Urita & Song, 1993 – China
*'' Alopecosa deserta'' Ponomarev, 2007 – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa disca'' Tang, Yin & Yang, 1997 – China
*'' Alopecosa dryada'' Cordes, 1996 – Greece
*'' Alopecosa edax'' (Thorell, 1875) – Poland, China
*'' Alopecosa ermolaevi'' Savelyeva, 1972 – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa etrusca'' Lugetti & Tongiorgi, 1969 – Italy, North Macedonia, Turkey
*'' Alopecosa exasperans'' (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1877) – Canada, Greenland
*'' Alopecosa fabrilis'' (Clerck, 1757) (type species
In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specime ...
) – Europe, Turkey, Russia (Europe to Far East), Central Asia, China
*'' Alopecosa farinosa'' (Herman, 1879) – Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to Far East), Kazakhstan, Iran?
*'' Alopecosa fedotovi'' (Charitonov, 1946) – Central Asia
*'' Alopecosa fuerteventurensis'' Wunderlich, 1992 – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa fulvastra'' Caporiacco, 1955 – Venezuela
*'' Alopecosa gachangensis'' Seo, 2017 – Korea
*'' Alopecosa garamantica'' (Caporiacco, 1936) – Libya
*'' Alopecosa gomerae'' (Strand, 1911) – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa gracilis'' (Bösenberg, 1895) – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa grancanariensis'' Wunderlich, 1992 – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa hamata'' (Schenkel, 1963) – China
*'' Alopecosa hermiguensis'' Wunderlich, 1992 – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa himalayaensis'' Hu, 2001 – China
*'' Alopecosa hingganica'' Tang, Urita & Song, 1993 – Mongolia, China
*'' Alopecosa hirta'' (Kulczyński, 1908) – Russia (north-eastern Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa hirtipes'' (Kulczyński, 1907) – Canada, USA (Alaska), Russia (Europe to Far East)
*'' Alopecosa hoevelsi'' Schmidt & Barensteiner, 2000 – China
*'' Alopecosa hokkaidensis'' Tanaka, 1985 – Russia (Far East), China, Japan
*'' Alopecosa huabanna'' Chen, Song & Gao, 2000 – China
*'' Alopecosa hui'' Chen, Song & Kim, 2001 – China
*'' Alopecosa inderensis'' Ponomarev, 2007 – Russia (Europe), Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa inimica'' (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1885) – Tajikistan
*'' Alopecosa inquilina'' (Clerck, 1757) – Europe, Russia (Europe to Far East), Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa irinae'' Lobanova, 1978 – Russia (South Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa kalahariana'' Roewer, 1960 – Botswana
*'' Alopecosa kalavrita'' Buchar, 2001 – Greece
*'' Alopecosa kaplanovi'' Oliger, 1983 – Russia (Far East)
*'' Alopecosa kasakhstanica'' Savelyeva, 1972 – Russia (West to South Siberia, Central Asia), Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa kochi'' (Keyserling, 1877) – North America
*'' Alopecosa koponeni'' Blagoev & Dondale, 2014 – Canada
*'' Alopecosa kovblyuki'' Nadolny & Ponomarev, 2012 – Ukraine, Russia (Europe, West Siberia), Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa kratochvili'' (Schenkel, 1963) – China
*'' Alopecosa krynickii'' (Thorell, 1875) – Ukraine (Crimea)
*'' Alopecosa kulczynski'' Sternbergs, 1979 – Russia (Middle Siberia to Far East)
*'' Alopecosa kulczynskii'' (Bösenberg, 1895) – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa kulsaryensis'' Ponomarev, 2012 – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa kungurica'' Esyunin, 1996 – Russia (Europe)
*'' Alopecosa kuntzi'' Denis, 1953 – Italy (Sicily), Turkey, Russia (Caucasus), Yemen
*'' Alopecosa laciniosa'' (Simon, 1876) – Spain, France
*'' Alopecosa lallemandi'' (Berland, 1913) – Ecuador
*'' Alopecosa latifasciata'' (Kroneberg, 1875) – Central Asia
*'' Alopecosa leonhardii'' (Strand, 1913) – Australia (Central)
*'' Alopecosa lessertiana'' Brignoli, 1983 – China
*'' Alopecosa licenti'' (Schenkel, 1953) – Russia (South Siberia, Far East), Mongolia, China, Korea
*'' Alopecosa lindbergi'' Roewer, 1960 – Afghanistan
*'' Alopecosa linzhan'' Chen & Song, 2003 – China
*'' Alopecosa litvinovi'' Izmailova, 1989 – Russia (South Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa longicymbia'' Savelyeva, 1972 – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa madigani'' (Hickman, 1944) – Australia (Northern Territory)
*'' Alopecosa mariae'' (Dahl, 1908) – Italy, Central Europe to Ukraine and south-eastern Europe, Russia (Europe to South Siberia), China
*'' Alopecosa marikovskyi'' Logunov, 2013 – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa medvedevi'' Ponomarev, 2009 – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa michaelseni'' (Simon, 1902) – Chile
*'' Alopecosa mikhailovi'' Omelko, Marusik & Koponen, 2013 – Russia (Sakhalin)
*'' Alopecosa moesta'' (Holmberg, 1876) – Argentina
*'' Alopecosa mojonia'' (Mello-Leitão, 1941) – Argentina
*'' Alopecosa moriutii'' Tanaka, 1985 – Russia (Far East), Korea, Japan
*'' Alopecosa mutabilis'' (Kulczyński, 1908) – Russia (Europe to East Siberia), USA (Alaska)
*'' Alopecosa nagpag'' Chen, Song & Kim, 2001 – China
*'' Alopecosa nemurensis'' (Strand, 1907) – Japan
*'' Alopecosa nigricans'' (Simon, 1886) – Argentina, Falkland Is.
*'' Alopecosa nitidus'' Hu, 2001 – China
*'' Alopecosa notabilis'' (Schmidt, 1895) – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa nybelini'' Roewer, 1960 – Afghanistan
*'' Alopecosa oahuensis'' (Keyserling, 1890) – Hawaii
*'' Alopecosa obscura'' Schmidt, 1980 – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa obsoleta'' (C. L. Koch, 1847) – Turkmenistan
*'' Alopecosa ogorodica'' Trilikauskas & Azarkina, 2014 – Russia (Altai)
*'' Alopecosa orbisaca'' Peng, Yin, Zhang & Kim, 1997 – China
*'' Alopecosa orophila'' (Thorell, 1887) – Myanmar
*'' Alopecosa orotavensis'' (Strand, 1916) – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa osa'' Marusik, Hippa & Koponen, 1996 – Russia (South Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa osellai'' Lugetti & Tongiorgi, 1969 – Spain
*'' Alopecosa ovalis'' Chen, Song & Gao, 2000 – China
*'' Alopecosa palmae'' Schmidt, 1982 – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa passibilis'' (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1885) – China
*'' Alopecosa pelusiaca'' (Audouin, 1826) – North Africa
*'' Alopecosa pentheri'' (Nosek, 1905) – Italy, south-eastern Europe, Ukraine, Turkey, Caucasus (Russia, Azerbaijan)
*'' Alopecosa pictilis'' (Emerton, 1885) – North America, Russia (South and north-eastern Siberia, Far East)
*'' Alopecosa pinetorum'' (Thorell, 1856) – Europe, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to South Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa psammophila'' Buchar, 2001 – Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania
*'' Alopecosa pseudocuneata'' (Schenkel, 1953) – China
*'' Alopecosa pulverulenta'' (Clerck, 1757) – Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to Far East), Kazakhstan, Iran, China, Korea, Japan
*'' Alopecosa pulverulenta'' tridentina (Thorell, 1875) – Austria
*'' Alopecosa raddei'' (Simon, 1889) – Central Asia
*'' Alopecosa rapa'' (Karsch, 1881) – Kiribati (Gilbert Is.)
*'' Alopecosa restricta'' Mello-Leitão, 1940 – Argentina
*'' Alopecosa rosea'' Mello-Leitão, 1945 – Argentina
*'' Alopecosa saurica'' Marusik, 1995 – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa schmidti'' (Hahn, 1835) – Sweden, Central to eastern and south-eastern Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to South Siberia), Kazakhstan, Iran
*''Alopecosa sciophila
''Alopecosa'' is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.
Life cycle
Most species grow up to 2&nb ...
'' Ponomarev, 2008 – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa sibirica'' (Kulczyński, 1908) – Russia (Middle Siberia to Far East), Mongolia, China
*'' Alopecosa simoni'' (Thorell, 1872) – Mediterranean
*'' Alopecosa sokhondoensis'' Logunov & Marusik, 1995 – Russia (Middle and South Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa solitaria'' (Herman, 1879) – Italy, Central to south-eastern and eastern Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to South Siberia), Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa solivaga'' (Kulczyński, 1901) – Russia (Europe, Siberia, Far East), Mongolia, China
*'' Alopecosa solivaga'' annulata (Kulczyński, 1916) – Russia (West Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa solivaga'' borea (Kulczyński, 1908) – Russia (Middle Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa solivaga'' katunjica (Ermolajev, 1937) – Russia (Altai)
*'' Alopecosa solivaga'' lineata (Kulczyński, 1916) – Russia (West Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa spasskyi'' Ponomarev, 2008 – Russia (Europe), Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa spinata'' Yu & Song, 1988 – China
*'' Alopecosa steppica'' Ponomarev, 2007 – Ukraine, Russia (Europe), Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa striatipes'' (C. L. Koch, 1839) – Europe, Turkey, Caucasus
*'' Alopecosa sublimbata'' Roewer, 1960 – Equatorial Guinea (Bioko)
*'' Alopecosa subrufa'' (Schenkel, 1963) – Russia (South Siberia), Mongolia, China
*'' Alopecosa subsolitaria'' Savelyeva, 1972 – Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa subvalida'' Guy, 1966 – Morocco
*'' Alopecosa sulzeri'' (Pavesi, 1873) – Europe, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to South Siberia), Kazakhstan
*'' Alopecosa taeniata'' (C. L. Koch, 1835) – Europe, Russia (Europe to South Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa taeniopus'' (Kulczyński, 1895) – Greece to China
*'' Alopecosa tanakai'' Omelko & Marusik, 2008 – Russia (Far East)
*'' Alopecosa thaleri'' Hepner & Paulus, 2007 – Canary Is.
*'' Alopecosa trabalis'' (Clerck, 1757) – Europe, Turkey, Russia (Europe to South Siberia), Kazakhstan, Iran, Central Asia
*'' Alopecosa tunetana'' Roewer, 1960 – Tunisia
*'' Alopecosa upembania'' Roewer, 1960 – Congo
*'' Alopecosa valida'' (Lucas, 1846) – Morocco, Algeria
*'' Alopecosa virgata'' (Kishida, 1910) – Russia (Far East), Korea, Japan
*'' Alopecosa volubilis'' Yoo, Kim & Tanaka, 2004 – Russia (Far East), Korea, Japan
*'' Alopecosa wenxianensis'' Tang, Yin & Yang, 1997 – China
*'' Alopecosa werneri'' (Roewer, 1960) – Algeria
*'' Alopecosa xiningensis'' Hu, 2001 – China
*'' Alopecosa xinjiangensis'' Hu & Wu, 1989 – Mongolia, China
*'' Alopecosa xuelin'' Tang & Zhang, 2004 – China
*'' Alopecosa yamalensis'' Esyunin, 1996 – Russia (Europe, West Siberia)
*'' Alopecosa zyuzini'' Logunov & Marusik, 1995 – Russia (South Siberia), Mongolia
Dubious names
'' Nomina dubia'' (dubious names) include:[
*''Alopecosa reimoseri'' (Kolosváry, 1934)
*''Alopecosa strandi'' (Roșca, 1936)
]
Distribution and habitat
The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution. The majority of species are native to Eurasia
Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago ...
, although some species occur in Africa, and others are found in North and South America.[ '' Alopecosa fabrilis'' is a critically endangered species found in Britain, with examples rediscovered in 2020 in the south of the country.]
References
External links
Picture of ''A. accentuata''
* Chen, Jun; Song, Da-Xiang & Gao, Jiu-Chun (2000), "Two new species of the genus ''Alopecosa'' Simon (Araneae: Lycosidae) from Inner Mongolia, China", ''Zoological Studies'' 39(2): 133–137
PDF
{{Taxonbar, from=Q139668
Araneomorphae genera
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Cosmopolitan spiders