Rhomphaea


Rhomphaea is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Ludwig Carl Christian Koch in 1872.

Distribution

Spiders in this genus are found worldwide.

Life style

Rhomphaea species are elusive solitary spiders. They capture other spiders that wander onto their webs and also venture onto other spiders' webs to capture the residents. These spiders employ aggressive mimicry to lure victims and throw a sticky triangular net over their prey.

Description

Rhomphaea spiders measure 4 to 5 mm in total length, with general coloration mostly light brown with many lighter spots.
The carapace features a slanting clypeus that projects anteriorly in both sexes, with stridulatory ridges and a longitudinal dark band. The carapace usually has a projection of the eye region in males. The abdomen is elongated, triangular, or cylindrical. In females, the abdomen tapers to a single tip and is usually four to six times as long behind the spinnerets as in front of them.
The legs are thin and long, with the first patella and tibia measuring three to four times the carapace length.

Taxonomy

The genus is very close to Ariamnes.

Species

, this genus includes 39 species:Rhomphaea aculeata Thorell, 1898 – MyanmarRhomphaea affinis Lessert, 1936 – Mozambique, South AfricaRhomphaea altissima Mello-Leitão, 1941 – BrazilRhomphaea angulipalpis Thorell, 1877 – Indonesia Rhomphaea annulipedis Yoshida & Nojima, 2010 – JapanRhomphaea barycephalus – Seychelles Rhomphaea birgitae – MyanmarRhomphaea brasiliensis Mello-Leitão, 1920 – Venezuela, BrazilRhomphaea ceraosus – ChinaRhomphaea cometes L. Koch, 1872 – Indonesia, Samoa, French Polynesia Rhomphaea cona – ArgentinaRhomphaea fictilium – Canada to ArgentinaRhomphaea hyrcana – Georgia, Azerbaijan, China, Japan, Turkey?Rhomphaea irrorata Thorell, 1898 – MyanmarRhomphaea jacko Tharmarajan & Benjamin, 2022 – Sri LankaRhomphaea labiata – India, China, Korea, Japan, LaosRhomphaea lactifera Simon, 1909 – VietnamRhomphaea longicaudata O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872 – Greece, LebanonRhomphaea marani Tharmarajan & Benjamin, 2022 – Sri LankaRhomphaea martini Tharmarajan & Benjamin, 2022 – Sri LankaRhomphaea metaltissima Soares & Camargo, 1948 – Panama to BrazilRhomphaea nasica – Canary Islands, Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Croatia, Greece, Africa, St. HelenaRhomphaea oris – ArgentinaRhomphaea ornatissima Dyal, 1935 – PakistanRhomphaea palmarensis – ArgentinaRhomphaea paradoxa – St. Vincent, Mexico to BrazilRhomphaea pignalitoensis – ArgentinaRhomphaea procera – Costa Rica to ArgentinaRhomphaea projiciens O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1896 – USA to Argentina. Introduced to IndiaRhomphaea recurvata – SeychellesRhomphaea rostrata – Canary Islands, Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, GreeceRhomphaea sagana – Azerbaijan, Iran, Russia, China, Korea, Japan, PhilippinesRhomphaea shanthi Tharmarajan & Benjamin, 2022 – Sri LankaRhomphaea sinica – ChinaRhomphaea sjostedti Tullgren, 1910 – TanzaniaRhomphaea tanikawai Yoshida, 2001 – China, JapanRhomphaea triangula – MyanmarRhomphaea urquharti – New ZealandRhomphaea velhaensis – Brazil
In synonymy:
  • R. argenteola = Rhomphaea nasica
  • R. canariensis = Rhomphaea rostrata
  • R. delicatula = Rhomphaea nasica
  • R. feioi = Rhomphaea projiciens O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1896
  • R. honesta = Rhomphaea brasiliensis Mello-Leitão, 1920
  • R. longa = Rhomphaea rostrata
  • R. martinae = Rhomphaea projiciens O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1896
  • R. petrunkevitchi = Rhomphaea paradoxa
  • R. remota = Rhomphaea fictilium
  • R. simoni = Rhomphaea procera
  • R. spinicaudata = Rhomphaea paradoxa
  • R. spinosa = Rhomphaea projiciens O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1896