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Spiders are classified as Anthrophoda, Arachnida, and Araneae. Spiders are classified into two types based on their life patterns: web-making and hunting, commonly known as trapdoor spiders. This study aimed to assess the diversity of spider distribution (Ordo Araneae) near Mount Galunggung. This study is quantitative. The VES (Visual Encounter Survey) method was utilized to collect data. 1) Gadobangkong waterfall, 2) Panoongan waterfall, and 3) Cimedang waterfall are the sampling places. This reseach gate 17 spesies spiders; Argiope aemula, Argiope anasuja, Leucauge celebesiana, Nephila pilipes, Oxyopes salticus, Nephilengys malabarensis, Tetragnatha Montana, Argiope appensa, Argiope catenulate, Cyrtophora moluccensis, Zotahpeventralis hasel, and Dolomedes vittalus were discovered. Leucauge celebesiana was the most frequent species discovered. Argiope catenulate, Tylorida ventralis, and Dolomedes vittalus were the least common. Each of which has only one individual. ABSTRAK: Laba–laba termasuk ke dalam filum Antrophoda, kelas Arachnida, dan Ordo Araneae. Berdasarkan pola hidupnya laba–laba terbagi menjadi laba–laba pembuat jaring dan laba- laba pemburu atau dikenal juga dengan laba-laba pintu jebakan. Tujuan dari penelitian ini untuk mengetahui diversitas dan distribusi laba-laba (Ordo Araneae) di sekitar Gunung Galunggung. Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian kuantitatif, Metode yang di gunakan dalam pengumpulan data adalah metode VES (Visual Encounter Survey) yang dikombinasikan dengan petak kuadran. Adapun lokasi pengambilan sampel yaitu 1) Curug Gadobangkong, 2) Curug Panoongan, 3) Curug Cimedang. Hasil penelitian di peroleh 17 jenis laba – laba; Argiope aemula, Argiope anasuja, Leucauge celebesiana, Nephila pilipes, Oxyopes salticus, Nephilengys malabarensis, Tetragnatha Montana, Argiope appensa, Argiope catenulate, Cyrtophora moluccensissis, Macrachantha hasselti, Herennia multipuncata, Gasterachantaha kuhli, Tylorida ventralis, Argiope reinwardti, Zoropsis spinimana, Dolomedes vittalus. Jenis yang paling banyak di temukan adalah Leucauge celebesiana, dan yang paling sedikit di temukan Argiope catenulate, Tylorida ventralis, Dolomedes vittalus. Yang masing masih hanya ditemukan 1 individu.

Phylogenetic relationships and estimated dates of origin, plus distributional, ecological and morphological data for salticid genera were used to examine a series of hypotheses related to the evolution of the Australian salticid fauna. Though independent, the time patterns of evolution of genera in Australia and South America were similar, while that for Northern Hemisphere taxa differed. In each case the production of new genera occurred during the warmer parts of the mid Tertiary but not during cooler and drier times. Asian elements entered Australia as early as 31 million years ago, long before the collision of the Australasian and Asian continental plates. Endemic and derivatives of Asian genera were similarly distributed across Australian biomes. However, arriving taxa were more successful when conditions matched their mesic origins (tropical), but less so when different (temperate). While endemic genera often extended their ranges into drier environments by increasing the number of species, recent arrivals did so by extending the range of individual species. Maximum Parsimony analyses of a range of presumed adaptive, morphological and ecological characters showed these did not reflect genus-level processes; however, the analysis did show all endemic genera had mesic origins. Knowledge of the biology of the charismatic Australian jumping spiders is limited. This study found that the evolution of new genera in Australia, South America and the Northern Hemisphere followed, in each case, the local pattern of mid-Tertiary climate changes. Further, the present Australian salticid fauna shows a successful diversity of many, often large, genera with radiations of species covering the entire range of Australian habitats, and probably can only adapt very slowly to modern continental climate change. Photo by B. J. Richardson. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marion Island, the larger of the Prince Edward Islands, lies in the sub-Antarctic biogeographic region in the southern Indian Ocean. From previous surveys, four spider species are known from Marion. The last survey was undertaken in 1968. During this study a survey was undertaken over a period of four weeks on the island to determine the present spider diversity and to record information about the habitat preferences and general behaviour of the species present. Three collection methods (active search, Tullgren funnels and pitfall traps) were used, and spiders were sampled from six habitat sites. A total of 430 spiders represented by four families were collected, Myro kerguelenesis crozetensis Enderlein, 1909 and M. paucispinosus Berland, 1947 (Desidae), Prinerigone vagans (Audouin, 1826) (Linyphiidae), Cheiracanthium furculatum Karsch, 1879 (Miturgidae) and an immature Salticidae. The miturgid and salticid are first records. Neomaso antarticus (Hickman, 1939) (Linyphiidae) was absent from samples, confirming that the species might have been an erroneous record.

The South African National Survey of Arachnida (SANSA) was initiated to make an inventory of the arachnid fauna of South Africa. Various projects are underway to prepare inventories of the spider fauna of the different floral biomes and provinces of South Africa. During April and May 2004 five different collecting methods were sed to sample spiders from four slopes on Sovenga Hill, an inselberg situated in the Savanna Biome, near Polokwane, in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. A total of 793 specimens represented by 29 families, 62 genera and 76 species were recorded over the twomonth period. The Thomisidae was the most abundant (n = 167) representing 21.1 % of all spiders sampled, followed by the Gnaphosidae (n = 101) with 12.7 % and the Lycosidae (n = 77) with 9.7 %. The most abundant species was a thomisid Tmarus comellini Garcia-Neto (n = 82), representing 10.3 % of the total, followed by a clubionid Clubiona godfreyi Lessert (n = 66) with 8.3 %. The Thomisidae was the most species-rich family with 12 species, followed by the Gnaphosidae with 11 species and the Araneidae with 10 species. Of the species collected 83.9 % were wandering spiders and 16.1 % web builders. This is the first quantitative survey of the Savanna Biome in the Polokwane area.

The Swartberg Nature Reserve is situated in the Large Swartberg mountain range, in the Oudtshoorn district of the Western Cape Province. Spiders were collected from the reserve over a 10-year period. This is one of the inventory projects of the South African National Survey (SANSA) for spiders of the Succulent Karoo Biome. A total of 45 families comprising 136 genera and 186 species were collected, all which are new records for the area. This represents about 9.4 of the total known South African spider fauna. Of the spiders collected 142 species (76.5 ) were wanderers and 44 (23.5 ) web dwellers. The plant dwellers comprised 43.3 of the total number of species and the ground dwellers 56.7 . The Gnaphosidae was the most diverse family represented by 33 species, followed by the Salticidae with 23 and Thomisidae with 15. Ten species are possibly new to science and the Filistatidae is a first record for South Africa. An annotated checklist with information on the guilds, habitat preference and web types are provided.

The article explains the functions of spiders that aid towards the feeding of Great Tit nestlings in a Mediterranean Iberian forest in Spain. The study was performed on Great Tit chicks found at a forest in Barcelona, Spain, where their meals were studied in 2 breeding seasons through neck-collars and video recording. Results of the study showed that caterpillars were the most common prey of Great Tit chicks, although spiders have become a vital food source, where consumption on those bugs were based on stages of chick development, main vegetation, and brood size.

Among spiders, some species could be qualified as colonial. Individuals may live alone or in colonies where each spider exploits its own capture web in a communal network. We compared solitary with colonial life in Cyrtophora female populations from South-East Sicily in 1992 and 1993. We used 6 parameters to describe and compare the populations: spider size, web size, egg production, prey captured, presence of kleptoparasites and their size.¶ Spiders living in colonies did not differ in size from solitary spiders.¶ The webs of colonial spiders were smaller than those of solitary spiders.¶ The number of prey captured and their size did not differ between the two types of spiders.¶ Solitary spiders produced more eggs than colonial individuals.¶ Kleptoparasite spiders Argyrodes gibbosus were more numerous in the webs of solitary spiders than in the webs of colonial spiders and there were more solitary webs infested by kleptoparasites in 1992. The kleptoparasites were larger in colonial webs than in solitary ones. Another species of spider, Holocnemus pulchei, spun its own web in the network of the web of Cyrtophora. The number of Holocnemus per web did not differ between solitary and colonial Cyrtophora.¶ Results are discussed by referring to what it is known in other temporarily social spiders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have been found in all organism taxa and may play an essential role as a host defense system. AMPs are organized in various conformations, such as linear peptides, disulfide bond-linked peptides, backbone-linked peptides and circular peptides. AMPs apparently act primarily on the plasma membrane, although an increasing number of works have shown that they may also target various intracellular sites. Spider venoms are rich sources of biomolecules that show several activities, including modulation or blockage of ion channels, anti-insect, anti-cancer, antihypertensive and antimicrobial activities, among others. In spider venoms from the Lycosidae family there are many linear AMPs with a wide range of activities against several microorganisms. Due to these singular activities, some Lycosidae AMPs have been modified to improve or decrease desirable or undesirable effects, respectively. Such modifications, especially with the aim of increasing their antibiotic activity, have led to the filing of many patent applications. This review explores the abundance of Lycosidae venom AMPs and some of their derivatives, and their use as new drug models., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Background: We report the genus Ticapimpla Gauld, 1991 from French Guiana and the species Ticapimpla amazonica Palacio et al., T. carinata Palacio et al., T. matamatae Palacio et al. and T. soinii Palacio et al. from Brazilian Amazonia. The new discoveries suggest that the genus is widely distributed in Amazonian lowland rain forests. In addition, we diagnose and illustrate the males of T. carinata and T. matamatae for the first time. Short diagnoses and layer-photos for all the Amazonian species are provided., New Information: The genus Ticapimpla is reported for the first time from French Guiana and the species T. amazonica , T. carinata , T. matamatae and T. soinii from Brazilian Amazonia. In addition, the males of T. carinata and T. matamatae are diagnosed and illustrated for the first time.