The Common Spiders of the United States — John Shaqi
The Common Spiders of the United StatesEmerton, J. H. (James Henry)
Science
The Common Spiders of the United States
Emerton, J. H. (James Henry)
Spiders -- United States
$Synema parvula.$--A common species in the South. Length about
one-eighth of an inch. The thorax is as wide as long, round and high in
the middle. The abdomen is as wide as long, widest across the middle,
and a little pointed behind. The third and fourth legs are not more than
two-thirds as long as the first and second, and lighter colored. The
thorax is orange-colored, a little darker at the sides, and with a dark
brown line on the edges over the legs. There are light rings around the
eyes. The abdomen is white or light yellow in front, and has a wide
black or brown band across the hinder half, not reaching back to the
spinnerets, and sometimes partly divided by a notch in front. On the
front half of the abdomen are some small dark spots and usually several
opaque white marks. On the under side of the abdomen there is a dark
band on each side extending back to and partly surrounding the
spinnerets. The front legs are orange brown, with the femora darker on
the front and rear edges. The other joints are a little darker at the
ends. The males are a little smaller and darker in color, but differ
little from the females.
THE GENUS XYSTICUS
In these spiders the general appearance is crab-like. The abdomen is not
much larger than the thorax, and both are flat and wide. The first and
second legs are a third longer than the third and fourth. The colors are
usually various shades of brown and gray, in small spots and bands. On
the upper side of each leg is usually a light line, with dark lines on
each side of it. The gait is often sidewise, the legs kept close to the
ground, so that the spider can move in a narrow crack. They live under
stones and bark and leaves, and some, like _triguttatus_, on low plants.
The males have longer legs and smaller abdomen and all the dark markings
larger and darker than the females. In _triguttatus_ there is great
difference between the sexes, but in most species very little, as in
_limbatus_ and _stomachosus_. The head is generally low, and the four
middle eyes form a rectangle a little wider than high (fig. 97).
[Illustration: FIGS. 87, 88. Xysticus stomachosus.--87, female. 88,
male. Both enlarged four times.]
$Xysticus stomachosus.$--A middle-sized and light-colored species, with
gray markings on a light ground, the markings most distinct on the
hinder legs and abdomen. The middle of the thorax is lighter than the
sides, and there is a small dark spot in the middle and a larger one on
each side toward the hinder end (figs. 87, 88). The third and fourth
legs have a distinct dark spot at the ends of femur, patella, and
tibia. The abdomen is light, with a few small spots at the front end and
three pairs of dark transverse bands on the hinder half. The hairs are
short and fine. The male has longer legs and is marked in the same way,
with the spots on the abdomen larger and extended farther forward.
[Illustration: FIGS. 89, 90. Xysticus limbatus.--89, female. 90, male.
Both enlarged four times.]
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