Cellar spider (dark spider)
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Cellar spider ( Amaurobius ferox ), female |
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| ( Walckenaer , 1830) |
The cellar spider or cellar dark spider ( Amaurobius ferox ) is a spider from the family of the dark spiders ( Amaurobiidae ). It is the largest and, together with the closely related window spider ( Amaurobius fenestralis ), one of the most common species of the family in Central Europe .
features
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With a body length of 11 to 16 millimeters for females and 8 to 10 millimeters for males, the cellar spider is a larger representative of the dark spiders. Both sexes are very different, so the stronger female has a much darker to almost black coloration, the prosoma has a dark red-brown as the base color with an almost black color on the front. The opisthosoma is almost black in color and has three indicated light-colored longitudinal ligaments at the front and three to four smaller angular spots behind them, which are interrupted or connected. Depending on the basic color of the spider, these markings can be different or blurred. The narrower male has a light brown basic color and his drawing is usually much more contrasting. The large, white, blister-like spot on the eyeball of the male is striking . The chelicerae of both sexes are red-brown to black in color, the sternum yellow.
Similar species
The cellar spider resembles other dark spiders, especially the window spider ( Amaurobis fenestralis ) and the similar window spider ( Amaurobis similis ), which belong to the same genus. Another similar and closely related species is the much rarer Amaurobius jugorum , which has so far only been found in East Germany , which can usually only be reliably distinguished from the cellar spider by genital morphological features.
Occurrence
The cellar spider is widespread in Central and Southern Europe . The synatrophic species was given its German name because it is primarily located in the settlement area and there preferably in cellars, wall crevices and other less-used areas of houses. Other habitats are gardens, ruderal vegetation and fallow land. In the Alps, the cellar spider was also found in forests under stones.
Way of life
Like all dark spiders, the cellar spider is predominantly nocturnal. They can also be found wandering freely at this time. Like all dark spiders, the cellar spider also builds a funnel web to catch prey. This consists of cribellate and radial, but sometimes also misshapen arranged catch threads, which are covered with a crimped wool. The crimped wool has a bluish shimmer when new. The spider stays in the living tube, which is open on both sides. Only the front opening is tied directly to the net. The spider emerges as soon as a prey animal is on the web, which is perceived and located by means of the vibration sense, grabs it and then withdraws with the prey animal into the shelter, where it is consumed. Other arthropods of suitable size are predominantly suitable as prey.
Reproduction
The mating of the cellar spider takes place in spring. At this time, the males can often be found walking around in search of a female's net. If a male has found one, it begins with a courtship, in which it initially performs drum movements with the pedipalps in front of the living tube of the female and then clearly twitches its legs and the opisthosoma. If the female is willing to mate, it appears for some time (sometimes after a few hours) at the exit of the living tube. The male then climbs onto the female's back, rotates around its own longitudinal axis and introduces the first bulb into the female's epigyne . During the transfer of the spermatheks, the button bladder on the button, the globe of which is being inserted, swells strongly and then collapses again a short time later. Two seconds later, both sex partners separate. Then the second part of the mating begins, for which the male climbs on the belly side of the female this time and now introduces the other globe and the transmission process is repeated. After mating, a secretion plug is visible in the female. Some time after mating, the mated female lays its egg cocoon in the web. The growth of the young of the cellar spider is similar to that of the window spider. The mother of the cellar spider dies shortly after the hatchlings and is used by them as their first source of food. The development of the young spiders also takes several years. This lasts at least two, possibly three years. While the females of the cellar spider can be found all year round, this is only the case with the males from autumn to spring.
Bite accidents and toxicity
Due to their size, including that of the chelicerae, the cellar spider is able to penetrate human skin with them. This is only done by the non-aggressive species in extreme need, for example when the spider is crushed. The bite can be painful, but is usually not dangerous. Symptoms mentioned are pain and redness or swelling in the area of the bite wound. The pain usually subsides after 12 hours.
Systematics
First describer Charles Athanase Walckenaer assigned the cellar spider to the family of sack spiders in 1830 and gave it the name Clubiona ferox . Already in 1837 Carl Ludwig Koch changed the affiliation to those of the dark spiders and the spider was named Amaurobius cryptarum . Just two years later, the same person describing the cellar spider was given its current name for the first time. John Blackwall mentioned the cellar spider in 1859 and 1861 as Ciniflo ferox and Ciniflo mordax . CL Koch's son Ludwig Carl Christian Koch finally got the name Amaurobius ferox through, although the cellar spider received several scientific synonyms.
gallery
Top view of a female
Closer frontal view of a female
Bulbi of a male
Dito
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Individual evidence
- ↑ Amaurobius ferox in the Arachnological Society's Spider Forum Wiki, accessed on May 27, 2019.
- ↑ a b c d e Description of the cellar spider on www.natur-in-nrw.de ( Link )
- ↑ a b c d e f Heiko Bellmann: The cosmos spider guide. Over 400 species in Europe. Kosmos Naturführer, Kosmos (Franckh-Kosmos), 2nd edition, 2016, ISBN 978-3-440-14895-2 .
- ↑ Description of the cellar spider on araneae.nmbe.ch ( Link )
- ↑ The cellar spider in the World Spider Catalog ( Link )
literature
- Heiko Bellmann: The cosmos spider guide. Over 400 species in Europe. Kosmos Naturführer, Kosmos (Franckh-Kosmos), 2nd edition, 2016, ISBN 978-3-440-14895-2 .
Web links
Amaurobis ferox in the World Spider Catalog
- Amaurobius ferox in the Arachnological Society's Spider Forum Wiki, accessed on May 27, 2019