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Wall spider

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Wall spiders
Temporal range: Cretaceous–present
Oecobius navus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Oecobiidae
Genus: Oecobius
Lucas, 1846
Species

O. navus
 see text

Diversity
79 species

Wall spider is the common name for members of the genus Oecobius. The members of these several species are all very small spiders that make small flat webs over crevices in walls and in similar spaces. They possess an organ called a cribellum, which is a kind of comb-like device used to separate fibers of silk drawn from its spinnerets into many extremely fine fibers. Those fibers are so small in diameter that prey insects easily become entangled in them. The spiders then bite them before they can get away.

One cosmopolitan species is O. navus (sometimes also called O. annulipes).

One species of interest is Oecobius civitas. When a spider enters the home of another spider, rather than defend itself, the resident leaves to find another one.[1]

Species

References

  1. ^ Dawkins, Richard (1976). The Selfish Gene. p. 236.

Further reading

  • Santos, A.J. & Gonzaga, M.O. (2003). On the spider genus Oecobius Lucas, 1846 in South America (Araneae, Oecobiidae). Journal of Natural History 37(2):239-252. Abstract