''Phormictopus'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

spider Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...

s in the family

Theraphosidae Tarantulas comprise a group of large and often hairy spiders of the family Theraphosidae. , 1,040 species have been identified, with 156 genera. The term "tarantula" is usually used to describe members of the family Theraphosidae, although m ...

(tarantulas) that occurs in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

, mainly

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

and Hispaniola, with three species probably misplaced in this genus found in

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 ...

and

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 ...

Description

''Phormictopus'' species are quite large spiders; for example a female of '' Phormictus auratus'' had a total body length of with the longest leg (the fourth) being long. They have

stridulating Stridulation is the act of producing sound by rubbing together certain body parts. This behavior is mostly associated with insects, but other animals are known to do this as well, such as a number of species of fish, snakes and spiders. The mech ...

organs on the coxae and trochanters of the

pedipalp 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 ...

s and first pair of legs. Males have two apophyses (projections) on the tibia of the first pair of legs, and

urticating hair Urticating hairs or urticating bristles are one of the primary defense mechanisms used by numerous plants, almost all New World tarantulas, and various lepidopteran caterpillars. ''Urtica'' is Latin for "nettle" (stinging nettles are in the genu ...

s of type I. Females have a two-part

spermatheca The spermatheca (pronounced plural: spermathecae ), also called receptaculum seminis (plural: receptacula seminis), is an organ of the female reproductive tract in insects, e.g. ants, bees, some molluscs, oligochaeta worms and certain other ...

, and

urticating hairs Urticating hairs or urticating bristles are one of the primary defense mechanisms used by numerous plants, almost all New World tarantulas, and various lepidopteran caterpillars. ''Urtica'' is Latin for "nettle" (stinging nettles are in the genus ...

of types I and III.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Phormictopus'' was erected by

Reginald Innes Pocock Reginald Innes Pocock F.R.S. (4 March 1863 – 9 August 1947) was a British zoologist. Pocock was born in Clifton, Bristol, the fourth son of Rev. Nicholas Pocock and Edith Prichard. He began showing interest in natural history at St. Edward ...

in 1901. He transferred ''Mygale cancerides'', first described by

Pierre André Latreille Pierre André Latreille (; 29 November 1762 – 6 February 1833) was a French zoologist, specialising in arthropods. Having trained as a Roman Catholic priest before the French Revolution, Latreille was imprisoned, and only regained his freedom ...

in 1806, to his new genus as the

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 specimen ...

. When Jan-Peter Rudloff reviewed the genus in 2008, it included 14 species. He reduced this number to seven definitely belonging to the genus, and described five more. Three species were considered misplaced in ''Phormictopus'', but no definite alternative placement was provided. With these exclusions, the genus is probably restricted to the West Indies.

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: *'' Phormictopus atrichomatus'' Schmidt, 1991 – probably

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ; es, La Española; Latin and french: Hispaniola; ht, Ispayola; tnq, Ayiti or Quisqueya) is an island in the Caribbean that is part of the Greater Antilles. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and th ...

*'' Phormictopus auratus'' Ortiz & Bertani, 2005 –

*'' Phormictopus australis'' Mello-Leitão, 1941 -

*'' Phormictopus bistriatus'' Rudloff, 2008 –

*''

Phormictopus cancerides ''Phormictopus cancerides'', also known as the Hispaniolan giant tarantula, is a tarantula endemic to Hispaniola in the Caribbean. Hunting During the day they hide under rocks and debris, and come out at night to look for prey. Their fangs are ...

'' (Latreille, 1806) (

) – Caribbean to Brazil *'' Phormictopus cautus'' (Ausserer, 1875) –

*'' Phormictopus cochleasvorax'' Rudloff, 2008 –

*''

Phormictopus cubensis ''Phormictopus'' is a genus of spiders in the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas) that occurs in the West Indies, mainly Cuba and Hispaniola, with three species probably misplaced in this genus found in Brazil and Argentina. Description ''Phormict ...

'' Chamberlin, 1917 –

*'' Phormictopus fritzschei'' Rudloff, 2008 –

*''

Phormictopus jonai ''Phormictopus'' is a genus of spiders in the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas) that occurs in the West Indies, mainly Cuba and Hispaniola, with three species probably misplaced in this genus found in Brazil and Argentina. Description ''Phormict ...

'' Rudloff, 2008 –

*''

Phormictopus melodermus ''Phormictopus'' is a genus of spiders in the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas) that occurs in the West Indies, mainly Cuba and Hispaniola, with three species probably misplaced in this genus found in Brazil and Argentina. Description ''Phormict ...

'' Chamberlin, 1917 –

*''

Phormictopus platus ''Phormictopus'' is a genus of spiders in the family Theraphosidae (tarantulas) that occurs in the West Indies, mainly Cuba and Hispaniola, with three species probably misplaced in this genus found in Brazil and Argentina. Description ''Phormict ...

'' Chamberlin, 1917 –

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 ...

*'' Phormictopus ribeiroi'' Mello-Leitão, 1923 -

*'' Phormictopus schepanskii'' Rudloff, 2008 –

In synonymy

* ''Phormictopus cancerides centumfocensis'' (Franganillo, 1926) = '' Phormictopus cautus'' * ''Phormictopus cancerides tenuispinus'' Strand, 1906 = ''

'' * ''Phormictopus dubius'' (Chamberlin, 1917) = ''

'' * ''Phormictopus nesiotes'' Chamberlin, 1917 = '' Phormictopus cautus'' * ''Phormictopus piephoi'' Schmidt, 2003 = ''

Nomina dubia In binomial nomenclature, a ''nomen dubium'' (Latin for "doubtful name", plural ''nomina dubia'') is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application. Zoology In case of a ''nomen dubium'' it may be impossible to determine whether a s ...

''Phormictopus brasiliensis'' Strand, 1907 -

''Phormictopus hirsutus'' Strand, 1907 -

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 ...

Transferred to other genera

''Phormictopus intermedius'' (Ausserer, 1875) → '' Cyrtopholis intermedia'' ''Phormictopus multicuspidatus'' Mello-Leitão, 1929 → ''

Proshapalopus multicuspidatus ''Proshapalopus'' is a genus of South American Theraphosidae, tarantulas that was first described by Cândido Firmino de Mello-Leitão in 1923. Species it contains four species, found in Colombia and Brazil: *''Proshapalopus amazonicus'' Rogéri ...

'' ''Phormictopus pheopygus'' Mello-Leitão, 1923 → ''

Acanthoscurria gomesiana ''Acanthoscurria gomesiana'' is a species of tarantula first identified in Brazil in 1923. It is known for producing the gomesin peptides, a class of proteins which have found to have anti-tumour and anti-microbial properties. References T ...

Description

Taxonomy

Species

In synonymy

Nomina dubia In binomial nomenclature, a ''nomen dubium'' (Latin for "doubtful name", plural ''nomina dubia'') is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application. Zoology In case of a ''nomen dubium'' it may be impossible to determine whether a s ...

Transferred to other genera

References

Further reading