Biology Encyclopedia	Araneae Author, 3000 “translation of the latin”
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Author

Common Names

Spiders

Latin Synonyms

Linnaean Rank

Order

Ancestral Phylogeny and Taxonomy

Explanation of phylogenetic trees

Lineage

Terrabiota, Cytota, Neomura, Eukaryota, Unikonta, Opisthoknota, Animalia, Metazoa, Eumetazoa, Bilateria, Protostomia, Ecdysozoa, Panarthropoda, Arthropoda, Cheliceriformes, Chelicerata, Arachnida, Micrura, Tetrapulmonata

Descendant Phylogeny and Taxonomy

Morphology

Spiders can be distinguished from other arachnids by their distinctive appearance and by their ability to produce silk.  A typical spider has 8 eyes, and a body divided into two parts – the cephalothorax and the abdomen.   The mouth is flanked by a pair of venom-injecting fangs, and a pair of leg-like pedipalps.  These have a sensory function and, in males, are also used to transfer sperm.  All spiders are predatory, injecting venom into their prey.  Some use silk to catch prey, but spiders also use silk to protect their eggs, lower themselves through the air, and even to sail on the breeze (Burnie, 2001).

Distribution

Ecology

Ethology

Evolution

Development

Ethnobiology

Population

Notes and Comments

References

Literature

Burnie, David and Don E. Wilson, editors-in-chief.  2001.  Animal.  Smithsonian Institution.  DK Publishing, Inc.

Information on the Internet