''Theridiosoma'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of ray spiders that was first described by

Octavius Pickard-Cambridge Octavius Pickard-Cambridge FRS (3 November 1828 – 9 March 1917) was an English clergyman and zoologist. He was a keen arachnologist who described and named more than 900 species of spider from a large collection that he made with contrib ...

in 1879. They use their web as a high speed slingshot to actively hunt for prey.

Description

Mature spiders in this genus have a body length of 0.5–2.5 mm. The

carapace A carapace is a dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the unde ...

ranges from dark brown to light tan, sometimes with distinct markings around the eye region or

fovea Fovea () (Latin for "pit"; plural foveae ) is a term in anatomy. It refers to a pit or depression in a structure. Human anatomy *Fovea centralis of the retina * Fovea buccalis or dimple * Fovea of the femoral head * Trochlear fovea of the fr ...

, The sternum is smooth, with sparse bristles, and is usually darker towards the margin. A pit organ is present on the anterior margin of the sternum, at both corners. The abdomen is ovoid in shape, and taller than wide or long; the dorsal side of the abdomen often bears a light, thin median band and/or symmetrical light spots, the ventral side is dark. The metatarsi of the legs are typically shorter than the tibiae. As with other spiders in the family, the tibiae of the 3rd and 4th legs bear a group of long, vibration-sensitive

trichobothria Trichobothria (singular trichobothrium) are elongate setae ("hairs") present in arachnids, various orders of insects, and myriapods that function in the detection of airborne vibrations and currents, and electrical charge. In 1883, Friedrich Da ...

. Species in this genus exhibit only slight

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di ...

; males are similar to females in colouration but are slightly smaller, with proportionally longer legs. The eyes are all approximately equal in size. The PME are very close together, sometimes touching, separated by less than half their diameter. The AME are also close together, but are typically separated by around half their diameter.

Distribution and habitat

This genus is found throughout the world. Their preferred habitat is typical for the family; they construct a web in wet, shaded understories of forests,

Behaviour

All species construct a vertical orb web in dark, damp places. At the end of web construction, the radial threads are fused at the centre so that only four, the "rays", reach the hub. The spider's rear legs are used to hold these rays while the front legs hold onto an extra line of thread, which is used to pull the web into a cone and keep it under tension. When potential prey nears the web the spider releases the tension in the web, causing it to slam into the prey. The spider then bites the prey, and wraps it in silk. The speeds with which the spiders slingshot themselves is very high; speeds exceeding 4.1 m/s with accelerations exceeding 1300 m/s² have been observed.

Species

it contains thirty-three species, found in Oceania, Asia, Central America, Africa, South America, North America, Europe, and the Caribbean: *'' Theridiosoma ankas'' Dupérré & Tapia, 2017 –

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

*''

Theridiosoma argenteolunulatum ''Theridiosoma'' is a genus of ray spiders that was first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1879. They use their web as a high speed slingshot to actively hunt for prey. Description Mature spiders in this genus have a body length of 0 ...

Simon Simon may refer to: People * Simon (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name Simon * Simon (surname), including a list of people with the surname Simon * Eugène Simon, French naturalist and the genus ...

, 1897 –

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

*'' Theridiosoma blaisei'' Simon, 1903 –

Gabon Gabon ( ; ), officially the Gabonese Republic (), is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, on the equator, bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo to the east and south, and ...

*''

Theridiosoma caaguara ''Theridiosoma'' is a genus of ray spiders that was first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1879. They use their web as a high speed slingshot to actively hunt for prey. Description Mature spiders in this genus have a body length of 0 ...

'' Rodrigues & Ott, 2005 –

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

*''

Theridiosoma chiripa ''Theridiosoma'' is a genus of ray spiders that was first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1879. They use their web as a high speed slingshot to actively hunt for prey. Description Mature spiders in this genus have a body length of 0 ...

'' Rodrigues & Ott, 2005 – Brazil *''

Theridiosoma circuloargenteum ''Theridiosoma'' is a genus of ray spiders that was first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1879. They use their web as a high speed slingshot to actively hunt for prey. Description Mature spiders in this genus have a body length of 0 ...

'' Wunderlich, 1976 –

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

(

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

) *''

Theridiosoma concolor ''Theridiosoma'' is a genus of ray spiders that was first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1879. They use their web as a high speed slingshot to actively hunt for prey. Description Mature spiders in this genus have a body length of 0 ...

Keyserling Keyserling is the surname of several members of the noble House of Keyserlingk: * Alexander Keyserling (1815–1891), Russian geologist, paleontologist, botanist and zoologist * Eugen von Keyserling (1833–1889), German arachnologist * Hermann Gr ...

, 1884 –

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

, Brazil *''

Theridiosoma davisi ''Theridiosoma'' is a genus of Theridiosomatidae, ray spiders that was first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1879. They use their web as a high speed slingshot to actively hunt for prey. Description Mature spiders in this genus have ...

Archer Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In modern ...

, 1953 – Mexico *'' Theridiosoma diwang'' Miller, Griswold & Yin, 2009 –

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

*'' Theridiosoma epeiroides'' Bösenberg &

Strand Strand or The Strand may refer to: Topography *The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a: ** Beach ** Shoreline * Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida Places Africa * Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa * ...

, 1906 –

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

(Far East),

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

*'' Theridiosoma esmeraldas'' Dupérré & Tapia, 2017 – Ecuador *'' Theridiosoma fasciatum'' Workman, 1896 –

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

(

Sumatra Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...

) *''

Theridiosoma gemmosum ''Theridiosoma gemmosum'' is a species of spider in the family Theridiosomatidae, known as ray spiders. It is widely distributed in the Holarctic region. A small spider with a shiny globular abdomen, it constructs a conical orb web. Description ...

'' (L. Koch, 1877) (

type Type may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc. * Data type, collection of values used for computations. * File type * TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file. * ...

) –

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, Japan *''

Theridiosoma genevensium ''Theridiosoma genevensium'', is a species of spider of the genus '' Theridiosoma''. It is endemic to Sri Lanka. See also * List of Theridiosomatidae species This page lists all described species of the spider family Theridiosomatidae accepte ...

'' ( Brignoli, 1972) –

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

*'' Theridiosoma goodnightorum'' Archer, 1953 – Mexico to Costa Rica *'' Theridiosoma kikuyu'' Brignoli, 1979 –

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

*'' Theridiosoma kullki'' Dupérré & Tapia, 2017 – Ecuador *'' Theridiosoma latebricola'' Locket, 1968 –

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

*'' Theridiosoma lopdelli'' Marples, 1955 –

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

*'' Theridiosoma lucidum'' Simon, 1897 – Venezuela *'' Theridiosoma nebulosum'' Simon, 1901 –

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

*'' Theridiosoma nechodomae'' Petrunkevitch, 1930 –

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

*'' Theridiosoma obscurum'' (Keyserling, 1886) – Brazil *'' Theridiosoma picteti'' Simon, 1893 – Indonesia (Sumatra) *'' Theridiosoma plumarium'' Zhao & Li, 2012 – China *'' Theridiosoma sacha'' Dupérré & Tapia, 2017 – Ecuador *'' Theridiosoma sancristobalensis'' Baert, 2014 – Ecuador (Galapagos Is.) *'' Theridiosoma savannum''

Chamberlin The Chamberlin is an electro-mechanical keyboard instrument that was a precursor to the Mellotron. It was developed and patented by the American inventor Harry Chamberlin from 1949 to 1956, when the first model was introduced. There are several ...

Ivie Ivie is a given name and surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name *Ivie Anderson (1904–1949), American jazz singer *Ivie Okujaye (born 1987), Nigerian actress and television producer *Ivie Richardson (1895–1960), South African ...

, 1944 – USA *'' Theridiosoma shuangbi'' Miller, Griswold & Yin, 2009 – China *'' Theridiosoma taiwanica'' Zhang, Zhu & Tso, 2006 –

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

*'' Theridiosoma triumphale'' Zhao & Li, 2012 – China *'' Theridiosoma vimineum'' Zhao & Li, 2012 – China *'' Theridiosoma zygops'' (Chamberlin & Ivie, 1936) –

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

Formerly included: *''T. albonotatum'' Petrunkevitch, 1930 (Transferred to ''

Baalzebub Ba'al Zabub , Ba'al Zvuv or Beelzebub ( ; ''Baʿal-zəḇūḇ''), also spelled Beelzebul or Belzebuth, and occasionally known as the Lord of the Flies, is a name derived from a Philistine god, formerly worshipped in Ekron, and later adopted ...

'') *''T. benoiti'' Roberts, 1978 (Transferred to '' Andasta'') *''T. brauni'' Wunderlich, 1976 (Transferred to ''Baalzebub'') *''T. fauna'' Simon, 1897 (Transferred to '' Naatlo'') *''T. nigrum'' (Keyserling, 1886) (Transferred to ''

Wendilgarda ''Wendilgarda'' is a genus of ray spiders that was first described by Eugen von Keyserling in 1886. Species it contains fourteen species and one subspecies, found in Asia, the Caribbean, Central America, São Tomé and Príncipe, Brazil, and Me ...

'') *''T. semiargenteum'' (Simon, 1895) (Transferred to ''Andasta'') *''T. splendidum'' (Taczanowski, 1873) (Transferred to ''Naatlo'') *''T. sylvicola'' Hingston, 1932 (Transferred to ''Naatlo'')

Description

Distribution and habitat

Behaviour

Species

See also

References

Further reading