''Amyciaea'' 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 ant mimicking

crab spiders The Thomisidae are a family of spiders, including about 170 genera and over 2,100 species. The common name crab spider is often linked to species in this family, but is also applied loosely to many other families of spiders. Many members of thi ...

that was first described by

Eugène Louis Simon Eugene is a common male given name that comes from the Greek εὐγενής (''eugenēs''), "noble", literally "well-born", from εὖ (''eu''), "well" and γένος (''genos''), "race, stock, kin".weaver ant Weaver ants or green ants are eusocial insects of the Hymenoptera family Formicidae belonging to the tribe Oecophyllini. Weaver ants live in trees (they are obligately arboreal) and are known for their unique nest building behaviour where wor ...

s, their preferred prey.

Description

Spiders in this genus are generally around 5mm in length. They don't have the typical leg position or strong distinction between fore and hind legs typical of thomisids, instead holding the front two legs in the air to mimic antennae. The abdomen bears two dark spots which resemble the

compound eyes A compound eye is a visual organ found in arthropods such as insects and crustaceans. It may consist of thousands of ommatidia, which are tiny independent photoreception units that consist of a cornea, lens, and photoreceptor cells which distin ...

of Weaver ants. Despite the "antennae" and "eyes" being on opposite sides of the body, the camouflage is effective enough to fool surrounding animals.

Behaviour

Spiders in this genus live and build their nests in foliage, and on the twigs of trees and bushes. They hang by a silken thread at a safe distance from the ant path to avoid accidental interactions, and feed on the ants by biting their head, instantly paralysing them. The males of this genus exhibit bridging behaviour when searching for a mate; similar to

ballooning Ballooning may refer to: * Hot air ballooning * Balloon (aeronautics) * Ballooning (spider) * Ballooning degeneration, a disease * Memory ballooning In computing, memory ballooning is a technique that is used to eliminate the need to overcommit ...

, they release a thread of silk behind them, however unlike ballooning they wait for the thread to catch on another plant part, then use it as a bridge to crawl across. This allows them to avoid travelling on the ground, where there may be predators.

Species

it contains five species, found in Africa, Asia, and Oceania: *''

Amyciaea albomaculata ''Amyciaea'' is a genus of ant mimicking crab spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1885. They mimic weaver ants, their preferred prey. Description Spiders in this genus are generally around 5mm in length. They don't hav ...

'' (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1874) –

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 Guinea *''

Amyciaea forticeps ''Amyciaea'' is a genus of ant mimicking crab spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1885. They mimic weaver ants, their preferred prey. Description Spiders in this genus are generally around 5mm in length. They don't hav ...

'' (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1873) (

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. * ...

) –

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

, China to Malaysia *''

Amyciaea hesperia ''Amyciaea'' is a genus of Ant mimicry, ant mimicking Thomisidae, crab spiders that was first described by Eugène Simon, Eugène Louis Simon in 1885. They mimic weaver ants, their preferred prey. Description Spiders in this genus are generally ...

'' Simon, 1895 –

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

, Ivory Coast *''

Amyciaea lineatipes ''Amyciaea'' is a genus of ant mimicking crab spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1885. They mimic weaver ants, their preferred prey. Description Spiders in this genus are generally around 5mm in length. They don't hav ...

'' O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1901 –

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. ...

) *''

Amyciaea orientalis ''Amyciaea'' is a genus of ant mimicking crab spiders that was first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1885. They mimic weaver ants, their preferred prey. Description Spiders in this genus are generally around 5mm in length. They don't hav ...

'' Simon, 1909 –

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

Distribution

''Amyciaea'' species are found in the

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

s of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, Southern Asia,

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

and

References

External links

Picture of ''A. albomaculata''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q660048 Thomisidae genera Spiders of Africa Spiders of Asia Spiders of Australia Taxa named by Eugène Simon