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Archaeidæ
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Archaeidæ

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Also known as Archaeidae, Pelican spider

Archaeidae, also known as assassin spiders and pelican spiders, is a spider family with about ninety described species in five genera. It contains small spiders, ranging from long, that prey exclusively on other spiders. They are unusual in that they have "necks", ranging from long and slender to short and thick. The name "pelican spider" refers to these elongated jaws and necks used to catch their prey. Living species of Archaeidae occur in South Africa, Madagascar and Australia, with the sister family Mecysmaucheniidae occurring in southern South America and New Zealand.

Species

FAMILY

  1. KingdomAnimalia
  2. PhylumArthropoda
  3. ClassArachnida
  4. OrderAraneae
  5. FamilyArchaeidae
Observations recorded1,419

via GBIF

Wikidata facts

Image
Austrarchaea sp..jpg
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Commons category
Archaeidae
taxon name
Archaeidae
start time
161000000-
Sources (1)

via Wikidata · CC0

~4 min read

Article

7 sections
Contents
  • Taxonomy
  • Genera
  • Extant genera
  • Fossils
  • Phylogeny
  • References
  • External links

Archaeidae, also known as assassin spiders and pelican spiders, is a spider family with about ninety described species in five genera. It contains small spiders, ranging from long, that prey exclusively on other spiders. They are unusual in that they have "necks", ranging from long and slender to short and thick. The name "pelican spider" refers to these elongated jaws and necks used to catch their prey. Living species of Archaeidae occur in South Africa, Madagascar and Australia, with the sister family Mecysmaucheniidae occurring in southern South America and New Zealand.

female Afrarchaea cornuta|thumb|left

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