''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no

venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a st ...

Cooperation

Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooperatively. However, a few species, such as ''P. raffrayi'', are known to cooperate in prey capture. A colony of ''P. raffrayi'' is composed of individual orb-webs connected by non-adhesive silk. Its average body length is about 6 mm in females and 3 mm in males. Adult females are orange for at least a week after the final molt, and become black a few weeks later. In these colonies, ''

Argyrodes ''Argyrodes'', also called dewdrop spiders, is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1864. They occur worldwide, and are best known for their kleptoparasitism. They can spin their own webs, but tend to ...

'' and '' Portia'' species can also be found, acting as

kleptoparasite Kleptoparasitism (etymologically, parasitism by theft) is a form of feeding in which one animal deliberately takes food from another. The strategy is evolutionarily stable when stealing is less costly than direct feeding, which can mean when fo ...

s and

predator Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill th ...

s, respectively. When relatively large prey is trapped on the periphery of the colony, two females cooperate in about 10% of cases in wrapping it, which increases their chances of success about fourfold. However, only one female then feeds on this prey. Cooperative capture is similar in ''P. republicana'', where more than two individuals may work together. ''

Philoponella vicina ''Philoponella vicina'' is a species of spider that does not use venom (characteristic of Uloboridae), but instead wraps its prey in hundreds of metres of spider silk to crush it to death. The spider then goes on to regurgitate digestive fluid in ...

'' uses its silk to compress and crush its prey.Eberhard, William G.; Barrantes, Gilbert & Weng, Ju-Lin (2006). "Tie them up tight: wrapping by ''Philoponella vicina'' spiders breaks, compresses and sometimes kills their prey". ''Naturwissenschaften'' 95(5): 251-254. �
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Distribution

''Philoponella'' species occur pantropical in the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, southeastern

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, with almost half of them found from the southern

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 ...

to northern

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Species

* ''

Philoponella angolensis ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (Lessert, 1933) —

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...

Angola , national_anthem = " Angola Avante"() , image_map = , map_caption = , capital = Luanda , religion = , religion_year = 2020 , religion_ref = , coordina ...

* ''

Philoponella arizonica ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (Gertsch, 1936) — USA,

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

* ''

Philoponella bella ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' Opell, 1979 —

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

* ''

Philoponella collina ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (Keyserling, 1883) —

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

* ''

Philoponella congregabilis ''Philoponella congregabilis'', sometimes referred to as the little humped spider, is an Australian species of communal spider that, like other species of Uloboridae, does not use venom. Instead it wraps its prey in spider silk to crush it to de ...

'' (

Rainbow A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...

, 1916) —

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

* ''

Philoponella cymbiformis ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' Xie et al., 1997 —

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

* ''

Philoponella divisa ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' Opell, 1979 — Colombia * ''

Philoponella fasciata ''Philoponella'' is a genus of Uloboridae, uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') Spider#Social spiders, construct communal webs, but nevert ...

'' (Mello-Leitão, 1917) —

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

, Argentina * '' Philoponella feroka'' (Bradoo, 1979) —

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

* '' Philoponella gibberosa'' (Kulczynski, 1908) —

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

* '' Philoponella herediae'' Opell, 1987 —

Costa Rica Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...

* ''

Philoponella hilaris ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (

Simon Simon may refer to: People * Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon * Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon * Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genus ...

, 1906) —

* ''

Philoponella lingulata ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' Dong, Zhu & Yoshida, 2005 — China * ''

Philoponella lunaris ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (C. L. Koch, 1839) — Brazil * '' Philoponella mollis'' (Thorell, 1895) —

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

* ''

Philoponella nasuta ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (Thorell, 1895) — China, Myanmar * '' Philoponella nigromaculata'' Yoshida, 1992 —

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

* ''

Philoponella operosa ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (Simon, 1896) —

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

* '' Philoponella oweni'' (Chamberlin, 1924) — USA, Mexico * '' Philoponella pantherina'' (Keyserling, 1890) — New South Wales * '' Philoponella para'' Opell, 1979 — Paraguay, Argentina * '' Philoponella pisiformis'' Dong, Zhu & Yoshida, 2005 — China * ''

Philoponella pomelita ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' Grismado, 2004 — Argentina * '' Philoponella prominens'' (Bösenberg & Strand, 1906) — China,

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

* '' Philoponella quadrituberculata'' (Thorell, 1892) — Java,

Moluccas The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located ...

* ''

Philoponella raffrayi ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (Simon, 1891) — Java, Moluccas * '' Philoponella ramirezi'' Grismado, 2004 — Brazil * ''

Philoponella republicana ''Philoponella'' is a genus of Uloboridae, uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') Spider#Social spiders, construct communal webs, but nevert ...

'' (Simon, 1891) — Panama to

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

* '' Philoponella sabah'' Yoshida, 1992 — Borneo * '' Philoponella semiplumosa'' (Simon, 1893) — USA,

Greater Antilles The Greater Antilles ( es, Grandes Antillas or Antillas Mayores; french: Grandes Antilles; ht, Gwo Zantiy; jam, Grieta hAntiliiz) is a grouping of the larger islands in the Caribbean Sea, including Cuba, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, and ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

* ''

Philoponella signatella ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (Roewer, 1951) — Mexico to Honduras * '' Philoponella subvittata'' Opell, 1981 —

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

* '' Philoponella tingens'' (Chamberlin & Ivie, 1936) — Costa Rica to Colombia * ''

Philoponella truncata ''Philoponella'' is a genus of uloborid spiders. Like all Uloboridae, these species have no venom. Cooperation Some species (among them ''P. congregabilis'' and ''P. oweni'') construct communal webs, but nevertheless do not capture prey cooper ...

'' (Thorell, 1895) — Myanmar, Java * '' Philoponella variabilis'' (Keyserling, 1887) —

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, New South Wales * ''

'' (O. P.-Cambridge, 1899) — Mexico to Costa Rica * '' Philoponella vittata'' (Keyserling, 1881) — Panama to Paraguay * '' Philoponella wuyiensis'' Xie et al., 1997 — China

Footnotes

References

* Tamerlan Thorell (1895)
Descriptive catalogue of the spiders of Burma
* Opell, B.D. (1987). "The new species ''Philoponella herediae'' and its modified orb-web (Araneae, Uloboridae)". ''J. Arachnol.'' 15: 59-63
PDF
* Matsumoto, Toshiya (1998). "Cooperative prey capture in the communal web spider, ''Philoponella raffray'' (Araneae, Uloboridae)". ''Journal of Arachnology'' 26: 392-396
PDF
* Grismado, Christian J. (2004). "Two new species of the genus ''Philoponella'' from Brazil and Argentina (Araneae, Uloboridae)". ''Iheringia, Sér. Zool.'' 94(1): 105-109
PDF
* Platnick, Norman I. (2008).

', version 8.5. American Museum of Natural History. {{Taxonbar, from=Q3023686 Uloboridae Araneomorphae genera Taxa named by Cândido Firmino de Mello-Leitão Pantropical spiders