Phryganoporus

Phryganoporus is a genus of Australian intertidal spiders that was first described by Eugène Simon in 1908.[2] Its five species only occur in Australia and Tasmania, with one species also occurring on Norfolk Island, south of New Caledonia.[3] The name is derived from Greek phryganon ("dry stick") and poros ("hole"), referring to the web that is often built on dry shrubs or low vegetation with a hole as an entrance.[2]

Phryganoporus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Desidae
Genus: Phryganoporus
Simon, 1908[1]
Type species
P. candidus
(L. Koch, 1872)
Species

5, see text

Though they are typically solitary, P. candidus is also known for its communal behavior, building "nests" made of branches and leaves knitted together with silk, creating tunnels for the spiders to live. Most of these webs are built late in the summer by individual females working separately in the construction and cleaning of their individual webs. Their behavior is likely due to pheromone mediated sibling tolerance, and isn't considered true cooperative behavior. As they mature, they grow less tolerant of each other and tend to disperse over the course of the summer. In the Riverina area of New South Wales, these nests have caused foliage matting, leaf fall and withering of limbs in fruit trees.[4]

Species

As of May 2019 it contains five species:[1]

  • Phryganoporus candidus (L. Koch, 1872) (type) – Australia (mainland, Norfolk Is.)
  • Phryganoporus davidleei Gray, 2002 – Australia (Western Australia, South Australia)
  • Phryganoporus melanopygus Gray, 2002 – Australia (Western Australia)
  • Phryganoporus nigrinus Simon, 1908 – Australia (Western Australia to Queensland)
  • Phryganoporus vandiemeni (Gray, 1983) – Australia (Victoria, Tasmania)

References
  1. "Gen. Phryganoporus Simon, 1908". World Spider Catalog Version 20.0. Natural History Museum Bern. 2019. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2019-06-01.
  2. Simon, E. (1908), "Araneae. 1re partie", in Michaelsen, Hartmeyer (ed.), Die Fauna Südwest-Australiens
  3. Gray, M.R. (2002). "The Taxonomy and Distribution of the Spider Genus Phryganoporus Simon (Araneae: Amaurobioidea: Desidae)" (PDF). Records of the Australian Museum. 54: 275–292. ISSN 0067-1975.
  4. "Desis - Long-jawed intertidal spiders or lace web spiders". Spiders from Australia. Retrieved 2019-04-14.


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