Miagrammopes
Miagrammopes is a genus of cribellate orb weavers first described by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1870. These spiders have a unique shape and only four of their original eight eyes. They spin a single line of web, actively watching and jerking the line to catch their prey.
Life style
Miagrammopes species construct a horizontal, usually single thread between two branches or twigs. The spider lays down a thick band of viscid silk and then takes up a position upside down near a point of attachment, with only the central section consisting of cribellate silk. The thread has one or a few sticky capture threads attached to it that are held under tension. The line is kept under tension and released with a snap when prey alights on the inviting line and becomes entangled.
The attack behaviour involves rapid jerking and sudden sagging of the capture thread. In some tropical species such as Miagrammopes brevicaudus, the web consists of three threads. The spider positions itself at the end of one of the upper threads and only approaches the mid-section in darkness.
The female carries the cylindrical egg-sac until the spiderlings emerge.
Description
The carapace is longer than wide, low, and weakly convex above. The cephalic region is broad and obtusely rounded in front. The thoracic region has nearly subparallel sides and is truncated behind.
The eyes are unequal in size and arranged in two unequal transverse rows. The eyes of the front row are minute or obsolete, with evidence of anterior median eyes seen in small, dark pigment spots in some specimens. The posterior row is recurved with median eyes widely separated. The clypeus is broad and sloping, equal in width to two or more diameters of the posterior median eye.
The sternum is elongated and divided into two unequal sternites seemingly joined to the carapace between second and third coxae by narrow sclerites. The abdomen is elongated, often tubular. The calamistrum is a broad lobe with the spinning field entire.
The leg formula is 1423. The legs are quite long and unequal, with the second and third pairs short and thin. The fourth pair is long and laterally compressed, while the first pair is stoutest and longest with apical segments laterally compressed. The trochanters of the first and fourth legs are strongly developed, exceeding the coxae in length. The metatarsus IV is laterally compressed with a ventral comb of short spines. The calamistrum occupies most of the length of the compressed fourth metatarsus and consists of a single, sinuous series of curved bristles set on a thin keel on the dorsal surface of the segment. The front tibiae of males often have rows of stout spines.
Species
, this genus includes 71 species:Miagrammopes albocinctus Simon, 1893 – VenezuelaMiagrammopes alboguttatus F. O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1902 – Guatemala to PanamaMiagrammopes albomaculatus Thorell, 1891 – India Miagrammopes animotus Chickering, 1968 – Puerto RicoMiagrammopes apostrophus Sen, Saha & Raychaudhuri, 2013 – IndiaMiagrammopes aspinatus Chickering, 1968 – PanamaMiagrammopes auriculatus Cai & Xu, 2021 – ChinaMiagrammopes auriventer Schenkel, 1953 – VenezuelaMiagrammopes bambusicola Simon, 1893 – VenezuelaMiagrammopes bifurcatus Dong, Yan, Zhu & Song, 2004 – ChinaMiagrammopes birabeni Mello-Leitão, 1945 – ArgentinaMiagrammopes biroi Kulczyński, 1908 – Papua New GuineaMiagrammopes bradleyi O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1874 – Australia Miagrammopes brasiliensis Roewer, 1951 – BrazilMiagrammopes brevicaudus O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1882 – South Africa, EswatiniMiagrammopes brevior Kulczyński, 1908 – Papua New GuineaMiagrammopes brooksptensis Barrion & Litsinger, 1995 – PhilippinesMiagrammopes cambridgei Thorell, 1887 – Myanmar, Indonesia Miagrammopes caudatus Keyserling, 1890 – Australia Miagrammopes ciliatus Petrunkevitch, 1926 – Puerto Rico, St. VincentMiagrammopes constrictus Purcell, 1904 – South AfricaMiagrammopes corticeus Simon, 1893 – VenezuelaMiagrammopes cubanus Banks, 1909 – CubaMiagrammopes extensus Simon, 1889 – IndiaMiagrammopes fasciatus Rainbow, 1916 – Australia Miagrammopes ferdinandi O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1870 – Sri LankaMiagrammopes flavus – Australia Miagrammopes gravelyi Tikader, 1971 – IndiaMiagrammopes grodnitskyi Logunov, 2018 – VietnamMiagrammopes gulliveri Butler, 1876 – Mauritius Miagrammopes guttatus Mello-Leitão, 1937 – Brazil, ArgentinaMiagrammopes indicus Tikader, 1971 – IndiaMiagrammopes intempus Chickering, 1968 – PanamaMiagrammopes kinabalu Logunov, 2018 – Malaysia Miagrammopes kirkeensis Tikader, 1971 – IndiaMiagrammopes larundus Chickering, 1968 – PanamaMiagrammopes latens Bryant, 1936 – Cuba, HispaniolaMiagrammopes lehtineni – Australia Miagrammopes licinus Chickering, 1968 – PanamaMiagrammopes longicauda O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1882 – South AfricaMiagrammopes luederwaldti Mello-Leitão, 1925 – BrazilMiagrammopes maigsieus Barrion & Litsinger, 1995 – PhilippinesMiagrammopes mexicanus O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1893 – United States, MexicoMiagrammopes molitus Chickering, 1968 – JamaicaMiagrammopes oblongus Yoshida, 1982 – Taiwan, JapanMiagrammopes oblucus Chickering, 1968 – JamaicaMiagrammopes orientalis Bösenberg & Strand, 1906 – China, Korea, Taiwan, JapanMiagrammopes paraorientalis Dong, Zhu & Yoshida, 2005 – ChinaMiagrammopes pinopus Chickering, 1968 – Virgin Is.Miagrammopes plumipes Kulczyński, 1911 – Indonesia Miagrammopes poonaensis Tikader, 1971 – IndiaMiagrammopes raffrayi Simon, 1881 – Tanzania Miagrammopes rimosus Simon, 1886 – Thailand, VietnamMiagrammopes romitii Caporiacco, 1947 – GuyanaMiagrammopes rubripes Mello-Leitão, 1949 – BrazilMiagrammopes rutundus Liang & Xu, 2021 – ChinaMiagrammopes satpudaensis Rajoria, 2015 – IndiaMiagrammopes scoparius Simon, 1892 – St. VincentMiagrammopes sexpunctatus Simon, 1906 – IndiaMiagrammopes similis Kulczyński, 1908 – Papua New GuineaMiagrammopes simus Chamberlin & Ivie, 1936 – PanamaMiagrammopes singaporensis Kulczyński, 1908 – SingaporeMiagrammopes spatulatus Dong, Yan, Zhu & Song, 2004 – ChinaMiagrammopes sutherlandi Tikader, 1971 – IndiaMiagrammopes thwaitesi O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1870 – India, Sri Lanka Miagrammopes tonatus Chickering, 1968 – JamaicaMiagrammopes trailli O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1882 – BrazilMiagrammopes uludusun Logunov, 2018 – Malaysia Miagrammopes unguliformis Dong, Yan, Zhu & Song, 2004 – ChinaMiagrammopes unipus Chickering, 1968 – PanamaMiagrammopes viridiventris Strand, 1911 – Indonesia