''Cubanops'' 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 ...

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 ...

araneomorph The Araneomorphae (also called the Labidognatha or "true spiders") are an infraorder of spiders. They are distinguishable by chelicerae (fangs) that point diagonally forward and cross in a pinching action, in contrast to the Mygalomorphae (taran ...

spiders in the family

Caponiidae Caponiidae is a family of ecribellate haplogyne spiders that are unusual in a number of ways. They differ from other spiders in lacking book lungs and having the posterior median spinnerets anteriorly displaced to form a transverse row with th ...

first described by A. Sánchez-Ruiz,

Norman I. Platnick Norman Ira Platnick (December 30, 1951 – April 8, 2020) was an American biological systematist and Arachnology, arachnologist. At the time of his death, he was a professor emeritus of the American Museum of Natural History#Richard Gilder Gradua ...

& N. Dupérré in 2010. These spiders are wandering hunters, generally found at ground level, under stones, in leaf litter or in the soil, and have only been found in the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

Description

They are a distinctive group of relatively small spiders, growing from in body length, and are very difficult to find in nature. Although specimens have only been recorded from

the Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of ...

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

, and

Hispaniola Hispaniola (, also ) is an island between Geography of Cuba, Cuba and Geography of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean. Hispaniola is the most populous island in the West Indies, and the second-largest by List of C ...

, a few female juvenile specimens sharing the somatic characters of the genus have been taken from

Saint John Parish, Antigua and Barbuda Saint John (), officially the Parish of Saint John, is a Parishes and dependencies of Antigua and Barbuda, civil parish of Antigua and Barbuda, on the northwestern portion of Antigua island. Its capital is the city of St. John's, Saint John, St. ...

, suggesting that ''Cubanops'' probably also occurs in

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 ...

as well as the

Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands () are an archipelago between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and northeastern Caribbean Sea, geographically forming part of the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, Caribbean islands or West Indie ...

. These spiders have tarsi that are subsegmented as well as a

ventral Standard anatomical terms of location are used to describe unambiguously the anatomy of humans and other animals. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...

translucent keel on their anterior metatarsi. They also have a translucent membrane connecting the anterior metatarsi and tarsi similar to those found in '' Nops'', '' Orthonops'', and ''

Tarsonops ''Tarsonops'' is a genus of araneomorph spiders in the family Caponiidae, first described by Ralph Vary Chamberlin Ralph Vary Chamberlin (January 3, 1879October 31, 1967) was an American biologist, Ethnography, ethnographer, and historian from ...

''. Species of ''Cubanops'' can be distinguished from species of ''Nops'' by the lack of a dorsally extended inferior claw found in Nops species. They can be distinguished from members of ''Orthonops'' and ''Tarsonops'' by the distinct

chevron Chevron (often relating to V-shaped patterns) may refer to: Science and technology * Chevron (aerospace), sawtooth patterns on some jet engines * Chevron (anatomy), a bone * '' Eulithis testata'', a moth * Chevron (geology), a fold in rock la ...

patterns on their

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 ...

, their widened labium, and a bisegmented fourth metatarsi.

Species

it contains twelve species: *'' Cubanops alayoni'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Platnick & Dupérré, 2010 – Cuba *''

Cubanops andersoni ''Cubanops'' is a genus of Caribbean Araneomorphae, araneomorph spiders in the family Caponiidae first described by A. Sánchez-Ruiz, Norman I. Platnick & N. Dupérré in 2010. These spiders are wandering hunters, generally found at ground level, ...

'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Platnick & Dupérré, 2010 – Bahama Is. *'' Cubanops armasi'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Platnick & Dupérré, 2010 – Cuba *'' Cubanops bimini'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Platnick & Dupérré, 2010 – Bahama Is. *'' Cubanops darlingtoni'' (Bryant, 1948) – Hispaniola *'' Cubanops granpiedra'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Platnick & Dupérré, 2010 – Cuba *''

Cubanops juragua ''Cubanops'' is a genus of Caribbean araneomorph spiders in the family Caponiidae first described by A. Sánchez-Ruiz, Norman I. Platnick & N. Dupérré in 2010. These spiders are wandering hunters, generally found at ground level, under stones, ...

'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Platnick & Dupérré, 2010 – Cuba *'' Cubanops ludovicorum'' (Alayón, 1976) (

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. * ...

) – Cuba *''

Cubanops luquillo ''Cubanops'' is a genus of Caribbean araneomorph spiders in the family Caponiidae first described by A. Sánchez-Ruiz, Norman I. Platnick & N. Dupérré in 2010. These spiders are wandering hunters, generally found at ground level, under stones, ...

'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Brescovit & Alayón, 2015 – Puerto Rico *'' Cubanops terueli'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Platnick & Dupérré, 2010 – Cuba *'' Cubanops tortuguilla'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Platnick & Dupérré, 2010 – Cuba *'' Cubanops vega'' Sánchez-Ruiz, Platnick & Dupérré, 2010 – Hispaniola

Gallery

File:Cubanops ludovicorum female.jpg, ''Cubanops ludovicorum'' Alayon, female File:Cubanops terueli male female.JPG, ''Cubanops terueli'' Sánchez-Ruiz et al., male and female File:Cubanops tortugilla.JPG, ''Cubanops tortuguilla'' Sánchez-Ruiz et al., female File:Cubanops granpiedra genitalia.jpg, ''Cubanops granpiedra'' Sánchez-Ruiz et al., internal genitalia File:Cubanops granpiedra.jpg, ''Cubanops granpiedra'' Sánchez-Ruiz et al., male palp File:Cubanops darlingtoni dv1.tiff, ''Cubanops darlingtoni'' Bryant, female File:Cubanops darlingtoni sternum.tiff, ''Cubanops darlingtoni'' Bryant, sternum

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2252939 Caponiidae Araneomorphae genera Spiders of the Caribbean