Stiphidiidae, also called sheetweb spiders, is a family of

araneomorph The Araneomorphae (also called the Labidognatha) are an infraorder of spiders. They are distinguishable by chelicerae (fangs) that point diagonally forward and cross in a pinching action, in contrast to the Mygalomorphae (tarantulas and their ...

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 first described in 1917. Most species are medium size ('' Stiphidion facetum'' is about long) and speckled brown with long legs. All members of this family occur in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

except for ''

Asmea ''Asmea'' is a genus of Papuan sheetweb spiders that was first described by M. R. Gray & H. M. Smith in 2008. Species it contains four species, all found in Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea (abbreviated PNG; , ; tpi, Papua Niugini ...

''. They build a horizontal sheet-like web under rocks, hence the name "sheetweb spiders". The largest of New Zealand's species is '' Cambridgea foliata'', with a body length up to and a span of up to . Hikers and trampers often find their sheet-like webs that can be up to across, but the spider itself is nocturnal, spending the day time inside its web tunnel. It can also be found in gardens and males may enter human homes. Their large size, including mouth parts up to long, may be intimidating, but it is considered harmless to humans and bites are extremely rare.

Genera

, 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 ...

accepts the following genera: Mullamullang Spider

*'' Aorangia'' Forster & Wilton, 1973 — New Zealand *''

'' Gray & Smith, 2008 — Papua New Guinea *''

Borrala ''Borrala'' is a genus of New South Welsh sheetweb spiders that was first described by M. R. Gray & H. M. Smith in 2004. Species it contains four species, found in New South Wales: *'' Borrala dorrigo'' Gray & Smith, 2004 ( type) – Australi ...

'' Gray & Smith, 2004 — Australia *'' Carbinea'' Davies, 1999 — Australia *'' Couranga'' Gray & Smith, 2008 — Australia *'' Elleguna'' Gray & Smith, 2008 — Australia *''

Jamberoo Jamberoo is a village on the South Coast of New South Wales, Australia in the Municipality of Kiama. It is approximately 11.3 km inland from Kiama. At the , Jamberoo had a population of 1,667. The town's name is derived from an Aboriginal ...

'' Gray & Smith, 2008 — Australia *'' Kababina'' Davies, 1995 — Australia *'' Karriella'' Gray & Smith, 2008 — Australia *'' Malarina'' Davies & Lambkin, 2000 — Australia *'' Marplesia'' Lehtinen, 1967 — New Zealand *'' Neolana'' Forster & Wilton, 1973 — New Zealand *'' Neoramia'' Forster & Wilton, 1973 — New Zealand *'' Pillara'' Gray & Smith, 2004 — Australia *'' Procambridgea'' Forster & Wilton, 1973 — Australia, New Zealand *'' Stiphidion'' Simon, 1902 — Australia, New Zealand *''

Tartarus In Greek mythology, Tartarus (; grc, , }) is the deep abyss that is used as a dungeon of torment and suffering for the wicked and as the prison for the Titans. Tartarus is the place where, according to Plato's ''Gorgias'' (), souls are judg ...

'' Gray, 1973 — Australia *''

Therlinya ''Therlinya'' is a genus of Australian sheetweb spiders that was first described by M. R. Gray & H. M. Smith in 2002. Species it contains eleven species, found in Victoria, New South Wales, and Queensland: *'' Therlinya angusta'' Gray & Smit ...

'' Gray & Smith, 2002 — Australia *'' Tjurunga'' Lehtinen, 1967 — Australia *'' Wabua'' Davies, 2000 — Australia

References

External links

Picture of ''Cambridgea foliata''

* Gray, M. R. & H. M. Smith (2002). ''Therlinya'', a new genus of spiders from eastern Australia (Araneae: Amaurobioidea). Rec. austral. Mus. 54: 293–31
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Araneomorphae families {{Araneomorphae-stub

Genera

See also

References

External links