| Dwarf spiders | |
|---|---|
| |
| Male Erigone atra | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Linyphiidae |
| Subfamily: | Erigoninae |
| Genera | |
|
Atypena | |
Erigoninae are the largest subfamily of sheet weavers (Linyphiidae), which is itself the second largest spider family. In the United States they are known as dwarf spiders, while they are called money spiders in England. The exact taxonomic limits of the subfamily are not yet known.[1]
Erigoninae are the most numerous of the sheet weavers, with more than 2,000 described species.
Many species live in leaf litter and build minute sheet webs.[1]
These spiders probably are more important as members of the beneficial complex of predators in agroecosystems than is generally known.[2] One species, Atypena formosana, lives in colonies in wetland habitats, where it builds nets just above the water line in rice fields to hunt planthopper nymphs.
The most well-known genus is Erigone.[citation needed]
- ^ a b Hormiga, Gustavo (2000). "Higher Level Phylogenetics of Erigonine Spiders (Araneae, Linyphiidae, Erigoninae)". Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology. 609 (609): 1–160. doi:10.5479/si.00810282.609. hdl:10088/5334. Retrieved 2023-10-11.
- ^ Schmidt, Martin H.; Tscharntke, Teja (2005). "The role of perennial habitats for Central European farmland spiders". Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 105 (1–2): 235–242. Bibcode:2005AgEE..105..235S. doi:10.1016/j.agee.2004.03.009. indicates that Erigone atra (23.5%) Tenuiphantes tenuis (20.1%), Oedothorax apicatus (14.5%) are the most active species in agricultural fields.