Arachnological Glossary
-
TermDefinition
- The posterior division of the spider body. The preferred term here is "opisthosoma" under Spider Anatomy Ontology (Ramirez & Michalike, 2019).
- Anterior eye row, comprising the anterior lateral eyes (ALE) and anterior median eyes (AME).
- Anterior lateral eyes (see AER)
- At or towards the front.
- AME: Median eyes of the anterior row (see AER).
- At the apex; an apical segment is the outermost segment of an appendage (opposite of basal). May be used for secondary appendages like apophyses on appendages like the embolus.
- Hardened outgrowth or projection.
- Appearing to be pressed down, nearly parallel to the surface, often referring to body hairs or scales.
- Tree-dwelling.
- Towards the base of a leg, a palp, or a spinneret, or an outgrowth; nearer the body (opposite of apical). May be used for secondary appendages like apophyses on appendages like the embolus.
- Respiratory structure consisting of a rounded membrane with a posterior slit; most spiders have a pair under the body, but mygalomorph spiders have two pairs.
- A stiff hair or short and slender spine.
- A row of curved hairs on metatarsus IV that is used to comb silk from a cribellum.
- Dorsal plate covering the cephalothorax.
- Relating to the head (front part of the cephalothorax).
- The anterior division of the spider body. The preferred term is "prosoma" under Spider Anatomy Ontology (Ramirez & Michalike, 2019).
- Jaw; comprises a large basal segment and an apical and readily moveable fang. Plural: chelicerae
- A group sharing a common ancestry.
- A dense brush of hairs near the paired claws at the tip of the tarsus.
- The area between the anterior eyes and the lower edge of the carapace.
- The first segment of the palp or leg, nearest to the body. Plural: coxae
- Dry and bluish-white silk produced by spiders through the combined action of the cribellum and calamistrum; such silk is not coated with glue droplets but is as adhesive as the normal glittering silk produced by spiders without a cribellum and calamistrum.
- A silk-spinning plate in front of the spinnerets on the underside of some groups of spiders.
- The spoon-shaped structure containing the reproductive parts of the male palp.
- Towards the terminal segment of a leg, a palp, or a spinneret, away from the body (opposite of basal).
- Upper or top part.
- Dorsal side of the abdomen.
- Narrow whip-like or leaf-like extension of the male palpal bulb which serves as a sperm injector. Plural: emboli
- Paired lobes on the underside of the body, next to the mouth and labium; in mygalomorph spiders (such as tarantulas), the organs are known as maxillae. Plural: endites
- A transverse groove across the ventral side of the abdomen.
- A platelike structure covering the female reproductive organ.
- The apical segment of a chelicera; at or near its tip is the opening of the venom gland.
- A segment of the leg or palp. Plural: femora
- Leaf‑shaped marking on the anterior dorsum.
- A pit or groove on the carapace representing the position where the stomach muscles are attached internally.
- Sex organs.
- A single specimen on which the species was described.
- “Skin” or surface layer of the body and legs.
- Abbreviation for “juvenile”; see Sub.
- A mouthpart, the middle structure positioned between the paired maxillae (the equivalent of endites) in front of the sternum under the body.
- Leg orientation with the legs directed outward rather than forward, as seen in some spider families; the morphologically prolateral side (the side facing in front) of each leg of these spiders is rotated upwards (arrowed), taking up a dorsal position, like in crabs.
- A 4-digit series of numbers (e.g., I-VI-II-III) representing the relative lengths of the legs, from the longest to the shortest.
- Comprise the trochanter (1), femur (2), patella (3), tibia (4), metatarsus (5), and tarsus (6) (see also coxa).
- Spines or stiff bristles.
- Equivalent to endite(s), a term used when describing the paired structures on the sides of the labium in mygalomorph spiders such as tarantulas and their relatives (refer to endites, labium, and maxillary lobes). Plural: maxillae
- Angular extension of the maxilla, well developed in tarantulas.
- The second last segment of the leg.
- An evolutionary relationship sharing a common ancestry.
- Body form; often used in referring to colour, such as “black morph” referring to individuals with black colouration in a species that may have different colouration.
- The form and structure of the body; a “morphological modification” refers to a special feature developed differently from the basic body plan.
- Type of symbiotic relationship where all species involved benefit from their interactions.
- Tarantulas and their relatives, with parallel, backwards-directed fangs and four book lungs.
- Area around the eyes.
- The posterior division of the spider body. The preferred term over "abdomen" under Spider Anatomy Ontology (Ramirez & Michalik, 2019).
- Comprise the femur (1), tibia (2), patella (3), and tarsus (4); a palp lacks a metatarsus that is found on the leg.
- A segment of the palp or leg (refer to leg segments and palp segments). Plural: patellae
- Stalk or “waist” joining the cephalothorax and abdomen.
- Paired short leg-like appendages next to the mouth, to the front of the first pair of legs; in the male, it is modified to serve as a sex organ.
- Posterior eye row, comprising the PME (posterior median eyes) and PLE (posterior lateral eyes).
- Reconstruction of evolutionary relationships of taxa using an entire genome or large portions of a genome.
- The evolutionary history and relationships of a group of organisms.
- Posterior lateral eyes (see PER)
- PME: Median pair of eyes in the posterior row (see PER).
- At or toward the back.
- Eye arrangement in which the lateral eyes are situated to the front of the median eyes; in the example here, the AER is procurved as the ALE are in a more forward position than the AME. See also: recurved
- On the front side of a lateral surface of a leg or palp when it is held at a right angle to the body axis (opposite of retrolateral).
- The anterior division of the spider body. The preferred term over "cephalothorax" under Spider Anatomy Ontology (Ramirez & Michalik, 2019).
- With a thickened border.
- Eye arrangement in which the lateral eyes are situated to the back of the median eyes in the top or front view; in this example, the PER is recurved as the PLE are in a more backward position than the PME. See also: procurved
- On the back side of a lateral surface of a leg or a palp when it is held at a right angle to the body axis (opposite of prolateral).
- Hardened with a special protein, giving the sclerotised structure a darker appearance and a more leathery or horn-like texture.
- Pad or brush of hairs on the lower surface of the legs or palps. Plural: scopulae
- Flattened or scale-like hairs; some are thickened. Plural: setae
- Males and females of the same species showing differences in body forms such as size and colouration.
- Corners projecting from both sides of the dorsal abdomen.
- Short form of the word “species”.
- Conical or finger-like silk-exuding structures at the posterior end of the abdomen.
- A “chest plate” or shield on the underside of the cephalothorax.
- Abbreviation for “sub-adult”; a juvenile pending a final moult before achieving full sexual maturity; “Sub ♂” and “Sub ♀” stand for sub-adult males and females respectively
- A character or characters uniquely shared by members of a closely-related group.
- The classification of living organisms into hierarchial series of groups emphasising their phylogenetic (evolutionary) interrelationships.
- The outermost, last segment of a leg or palp. Plural: tarsi
- The theory and practice of describing, naming, and classifying organisms.
- Relating to the thorax (rearward region of cephalothorax); for example, thoracic groove.
- The third last segment of the leg or palp. Plural: tibiae
- The full range of messenger RNA, or mRNA, molecules expressed by an organism.
- Fine sensory hair mounted on a round pit. Plural: trichobothria
- Second leg segment, between the coxa and the femur; it is usually a short ring-shaped structure.
- Flat or straight, appearing as though some part has been cut off.
- Swelling, protrusion, knob‑like outgrowth.
- The locality where the holotype was collected.
- A species designated as the representative of a genus.
- The underside of the abdomen.
- World Arachnid Catalog
- World Spider Catalog
