Great woodlouse hunter

Great woodlouse hunter
	Dysdera crocata
Systematics
Subordination :	Real spiders (Araneomorphae)
Partial order :	Haplogynae
Superfamily :	Dysderoidea
Family :	Six-eye spiders (Dysderidae)
Genre :	Dysdera
Type :	Great woodlouse hunter
Scientific name
	Dysdera crocata
	CL Koch , 1838

The large woodlouse hunter ( Dysdera crocata ) is a real spider from the family of six-eye spiders . As with all spiders in the family, the eyes of Dysdera crocata are dense, almost circular, on the forehead. The opisthosoma has no dark spots.

Appearance

Males with a pronounced red prosoma

The body length is 11–15 mm in the female and 9–10 mm in the smaller male, whereby the very large chelicerae are not measured. The prosoma of this spider is dark red and the opisthosoma is greyish or yellowish in color. The chelicerae are longer than half the front body and therefore remarkably large. Dysdera crocata is very similar to Dysdera erythrina . The two types differ e.g. B. in size, with Dysdera crocata becoming larger and having longer chelicerae. The spider also looks similar to Harpactea rubicunda . In contrast to this, the chelicerae are larger and the upper part of the chelicerae is directed a little forward.

distribution and habitat

Dysdera crocata loves warmth and is often found in buildings, damp basements and greenhouses. It is common in Central Europe, but rather rare. In contrast, it is common in the Mediterranean region.

Way of life

During the day, the nocturnal spider hides in a firm webbing sack, usually under stones. It mainly feeds on woodlice , which other spiders avoid. Since the chelicerae are greatly elongated, they can grip the back plates of the woodlice and thus attach their venomous bite. It also prey on other spiders.

Bites

If the spider is touched and feels threatened, it can also bite humans with its long poisonous claws. The bite can be painful, but the poison is harmless to humans and does not cause any health problems. Local itching has been reported in some cases.

Web links

Commons : Large Asseljäger ( Dysdera crocata ) - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Dysdera crocata in the World Spider Catalog
Dysdera crocata at wiki.spinnen-forum.de

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c Heiko Bellmann: The cosmos spider guide - over 400 species in Europe . 1st edition. Franckh-Kosmos Verlag, Stuttgart 2010, ISBN 978-3-440-10114-8 .
^ Dysdera crocata CL Koch, 1838.
↑ RS Vetter, GK Isbister: Verified bites by the woodlouse spider, Dysdera crocata . In: Toxicon . 47, No. 7, 2006, pp. 826-829. doi : 10.1016 / j.toxicon.2006.02.002 . PMID 16574180 .

[Bellmann_2010-1] Heiko Bellmann: The cosmos spider guide - over 400 species in Europe . 1st edition. Franckh-Kosmos Verlag, Stuttgart 2010, ISBN 978-3-440-10114-8 .

[2] Dysdera crocata CL Koch, 1838.

[3] RS Vetter, GK Isbister: Verified bites by the woodlouse spider, Dysdera crocata . In: Toxicon . 47, No. 7, 2006, pp. 826-829. doi : 10.1016 / j.toxicon.2006.02.002 . PMID 16574180 .