Glossary

2-4-2 eye pattern: arrangement of eyes in agelenid spiders (in this tool only in Hololena), eye rows are curved in a forward direction so strongly that the posterior lateral eyes are in the same horizontal alignment as the anterior median eyes such that it appears that there are 3 rows of eyes, 2 in the bottom and top rows and 4 in the middle

abdomen: major posterior body section

AER: abbreviation for anterior eye row

AME: abbreviation for anterior median eyes

amorphous: in regard to egg sacs, having no easily determinable form

angular: in regard to egg sacs, having margins that have sharp angles, like in a triangle, not round or smooth

anterior: toward the front of the body

anterior eye row: front 4 eyes, usually arranged in a straight or slightly curved line, abbreviated AER

anterior median eyes: within the anterior eye row, the 2 eyes in the middle, closest to each other, abbreviated AER

apophysis: prominence emerging from a body part, typically involving the genitalia

bulbous: a bulb-like object; a swollen, round, or bulging object. In Thiodina hespera, the base of the spines on the ventral surface of tibia I are bulbous, which is a diagnostic feature, always in 2 pairs and swollen at the base

carapace: dorsal portion of the cephalothorax

cardiac region: longitudinal region on the dorsal anterior portion of the abdomen that is sometimes a different color than the rest of the abdomen due to thin skin; a region where special markings can occur

cephalic region: area on the carapace which includes the eyes and the space immediately behind it

cephalothorax: major anterior body section to which the legs attach

chelicera: (plural = chelicerae) movable mouthpart to which the fang is attached

clypeus: the portion of the face of the spider between the chelicerae and the eyes

coffee bean pattern: on the dorsal abdominal surface of Neoscona oaxacensis, there are spines that run down the middle of yellow oblong spots, giving the impression of many coffee beans on the back of the spider

coxa: first of the 7 leg segments, the segment closest to the cephalothorax

distal: on appendages, in a direction further away from the central body

dorsal: view from the top portion of the body

elongate: in regard to the abdomen, longer than thick, usually about 2 to 3 times longer than its thickness

epigynum: female genitalia covering, typically sclerotized

exoskeleton: external covering of the body that provides support for internal muscles and organs, shed as a complete unit and left behind as the spider grows into the next instar

fang: venom delivery structure on the distal end of the chelicera

femur: (plural = femora) third of the 7 leg segments, the long segment closest to the body, between the trochanter and patella

globose: regarding the abdomen, rounded like a globe as in black widow spiders

hexagon + 2: the eye pattern in Oxyopes spiders where six of the eyes are arranged in a hexagon on the top of the carapace with two small eyes ventral to the hexagon

instar: stage between moltings; spiders go through several instars prior to maturity

lateral: away from the midline of the body

longitudinal: in line with the body, in an anterior to posterior direction

medial: toward the midline of the body

median: toward the midline of the body

metatarsus: (plural = metatarsi) sixth of the 7 leg segments, between the tibia and tarsus

palp: abbreviated term for pedipalp

patella: fourth of 7 leg segments, typically small, and between femur and tibia

pedipalp: leg-like segment on the anterior portion of the body, composed of 6 segments (compared to the leg, it is missing the metatarsus), undifferentiated in the female and most immatures, swollen and undifferentiated in penultimate males, contains the male reproductive structures in mature males

penultimate: instar before the mature molt; in penultimate males, the tarsus of the pedipalp is swollen but has no diagnostic characteristics that aid identification

PER: abbreviation for posterior eye row

PLE: abbreviation for posterior median eyes

PME: abbreviation for posterior median eyes

posterior: toward the rear of the body

posterior eye row: rear 4 eyes, usually arranged in a straight or slightly curved line, but sometimes can be so greatly curved that they are designated as being in 2 rows; abbreviated PER

posterior lateral eyes: within the posterior eye row, the 2 eyes on the ends of the row, abbreviated PLE

posterior median eyes: within the posterior eye row, the 2 eyes in the middle, closest to each other, abbreviated PME

proximal: on appendages, in a direction toward the central body

sclerotized: hardened composition of a bodily structure, similar to how a human fingernail is hard in comparison to the surrounding skin

seta: (plural = setae) hair-like appendages common on legs and body, sometimes morphologically specialized

spine: conspicuous, robust, elongate, tapered, and pointed prominence found on legs of some species, sometimes diagnostic

spinnerets: specialized organs at the posterior-most portion of the abdomen from which silk is emitted; the number of segments or shape of the spinnerets is diagnostic for some species

subequal: similar in size, typically in reference to eyes

suspended: in regard to egg sacs, when the sac is attached to the web by silk strands and is hanging in space, as opposed to egg sacs that are attached to a substrate

tarsus: (plural = tarsi) seventh of 7 leg segments, at distal end of leg after the metatarsus

tibia: fifth of 7 leg segments, long segment between the patella and metatarsus

trochanter: second of 7 leg segments, very small segment between coxa and femur; must view spider from ventral aspect and bend the femur to see it

ventral: (also: venter) bottom facing surface of the spider or its palp