Lynx spiders

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lynx spiders
Oxyopes sertatus

Oxyopes sertatus

Systematics
Class : Arachnids (arachnida)
Order : Spiders (Araneae)
Subordination : Real spiders (Araneomorphae)
Partial order : Entelegynae
Superfamily : Lycosoidea
Family : Lynx spiders
Scientific name
Oxyopidae
Thorell , 1870

The lynx spiders (Oxyopidae), also called sharp-eye spiders , are a family of real spiders within the superfamily of the Lycosoidea (wolf spider-like), which currently consists of nine genera with 457 species . (As of June 1, 2019)

The family is mainly found in the tropics and the warm temperate zones. Only a few species feel comfortable in the Palearctic region or in the winter-cold areas of North America . They are absent in the polar zone.

description

Lynx spiders are powerfully built with a high arched oval back shield. They have an elongated abdomen that narrows towards the back. But they are extremely formen and full color, and therefore, take the whole family, at first glance easy with wolf spiders , crab spiders or Strecker spider to be confused, especially since their courtship and mating strategies are similar. They have noticeably black thorns and thin legs of the same length. The males are usually slimmer than the females and, like the males of the wolf spiders , sac spiders and smooth-bellied spiders , have noticeably longer legs than the females.

Their way of life requires an adjustment of the sense of sight as well as the tarsi . They have a large pair of eyes facing forward (anterior median eyes) to enable three-dimensional vision. The three other pairs are made smaller and arranged in a circle or in four rows one above the other. Their tarsi have surprisingly few setae , but this does not seem to hinder their activity.

Courtship dance

The longer legs enable the males to be superior to the females in sexual intercourse. As with the jumping spiders , visual stimuli are the primary courtship triggers, but tactile and chemical stimuli also play a role. Lynx spiders recognize their partner from several centimeters away. The male performs a courtship dance in which the dark-colored palps are moved in a special way. The movements of the palps, legs and abdomen vary depending on the species. The courtship dance is accompanied by leg touches before copulation begins.

Lifestyle and brood care

Lynx spiders are mostly diurnal hunters who specialize in netless catching of prey on herbaceous plants or in the bush. Like jumping spiders , they run around on leaves and stems, jumping from leaf to leaf. They always secure themselves with a thread that is attached to the base before jumping. The prey is jumped at. Few are less agile and ambush their prey . They press against trunks or wait like the crab spiders for flowers for the right prey.

Female lynx spiders spin egg cocoons attached to plants, e.g. B. wild buckwheat , stapled and also guarded. The mother weaves in some species, e.g. B. with the green lynx spider , a protective web of leaves loosely together, in which the hatched young can develop for the first time. There are reports of Peucetia species that spend their entire life on one plant.

Native species

By far the largest genus is Oxyopes , of which at least four species occur in Central Europe . The diurnal representative Oxyopes ramosus is the most frequently found of them. However, like dry and warm biotopes as a whole, they are rarely found. Other native species are Oxyopes heterophthalmus , Oxyopes lineatus and Oxyopes nigripalpis , which look for prey on the vegetation (heather, bushes) when the sun is shining .

Systematics

The World Spider Catalog currently lists 9 genera and 457 species for the lynx spiders. (As of June 1, 2019)

Web links

Commons : Lynx spiders (Oxyopidae)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Oxyopidae in the World Spider Catalog

literature

  • Willis J. Gertsch : American Spiders. 2nd edition, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York 1979. ISBN 0-442-22649-7
  • Ambros Hänggi, Edi Stöckli, Wolfgang Nentwig: Habitat of Central European Spiders. Characterization of the habitats of the most common spider species in Central Europe and the species associated with them. In: Center Suisse de Cartographie de la Faune (ed.): Miscellanea Faunistica Helvetiae No. 4. Neuchâtel 1995. ISBN 2-88414-008-5
  • Stefan Heimer, Wolfgang Nentwig: Spinning Central Europe. Verlag Paul Parey, Berlin 1991. ISBN 3-489-53534-0
  • Rainer F. Foelix: Biology of the spiders. Georg Thieme, Stuttgart 1979, ISBN 3-13-575801-X .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Natural History Museum of the Burgergemeinde Bern: World Spider Catalog Version 17.0 - Oxyopidae . Retrieved March 28, 2016.