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''Nesticus cellulanus'', also known as the cavity spider or comb-footed cellar spider, is a species of
This species is very similar to the spiders of the
and scaffold web spider
Scaffold web spiders (Nesticidae) is a family of araneomorph spiders closely allied with tangle web spiders. Like the "Theridiidae", these spiders have a comb of serrated bristles on the hind tarsi that are used to pull silk bands from the spinne ...
. It is found throughout Europe and Turkey, and has been introduced to North America.
Description
This species is very similar to the spiders of the Theridiidae
Theridiidae, also known as the tangle-web spiders, cobweb spiders and comb-footed spiders, is a large family of Araneomorphae, araneomorph spiders first described by Carl Jakob Sundevall in 1833. This diverse, globally distributed family includes ...
family and even have a comb on their fourth tarsi. Adult males have a body length of 3–5 mm (0.12–0.20 in), females 3.5–6 mm (0.14–0.24 in). Besides this slight size difference, the sexes are very similar in appearance. The carapace
A carapace is a Dorsum (biology), dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tor ...
is pale yellow, with a dark brown median band which narrows towards the middle, and thin, dark marginal lines. The abdomen is also pale yellow, with three or four dark rings to either side of an irregular median band. The legs are coloured as the carapace, and sometimes bear dark annulations. The colour of the markings can vary depending on the light level of the habitat, with darker habitats causing lighter markings.
Distribution and habitat
''Nesticus cellulanus'' has aholarctic
The Holarctic realm is a biogeographic realm that comprises the majority of habitats found throughout the continents in the Northern Hemisphere. It corresponds to the floristic Boreal Kingdom. It includes both the Nearctic zoogeographical region ...
distributionEurope
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
. It has also been introduced to northeastern United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
and Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
.
This species is found primarily in damp, dark habitats such as caves, mines, cellars, sewers and hollow trees, where they construct a web similar to that of the steatoda. The web creates a loose platform of sticky threads that traps crawling insects.
Behaviour
Reproduction
This species mates during the early summer and egg sacs are produced between June and August. Adults are found throughout the year. The male commences courtship after it comes into contact with the female's silk thread. Initially, it consists of gentle knocking with itspedipalps
Pedipalps (commonly shortened to palps or palpi) are the second pair of appendages of chelicerates – a group of arthropods including spiders, scorpions, horseshoe crabs, and sea spiders. The pedipalps are lateral to the chelicerae ("jaws") and ...
and abdominal
The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...
jerking. This increases in intensity until copulation takes place and may even result in partial destruction of the female's web. The female eventually turns towards the male and suspends herself in a vertical position, upon which the male pushes his conductor into the female insemination orifice. After the male extracts his first bulb, he may attempt a second insertion with the other one after renewing palpal knocking. The spiders separate peacefully after copulation is completed. Eggs are laid after 34 to 54 days after copulation and spiderlings hatch after 25 to 28 days.
Newly-moulted females do not react to a male's courtship while inseminated females react aggressively by rushing towards the male.
Taxonomy
''Nesticus cellulanus'' contains two subspecies: ''N. c. cellulans'' (thenominate subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
), and ''N. c. affinis''.
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q510385 Nesticidae Spiders of Asia Spiders of Europe Spiders described in 1757 Taxa named by Carl Alexander Clerck