Linyphiidae

"Sheet weaver" redirects here. For sheetweb spider, see Stiphidiidae.

Dwarf spiders
Temporal range: Cretaceous–present
Drapetisca alteranda
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Superfamily: Araneoidea
Family: Linyphiidae
Blackwall, 1859
Subfamilies

Dubiaraneinae
Erigoninae
Leptyphantinae
Linyphiinae
Micronetinae
Mynogleninae
Stemonyphantinae[1]

Diversity
624 genera, 4724 species

Linyphiidae, spiders commonly known as sheet weavers (from the shape of their webs), or money spiders (in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and in Portugal, from the superstition that if such a spider is seen running on one, it has come to spin the person new clothes, meaning financial good fortune) is a family of very small spiders comprising 4706 described species in 620 genera worldwide.[2] This makes Linyphiidae the second largest family of spiders after the Salticidae. The family is poorly understood due to their small body size and wide distribution; new genera and species are still being discovered throughout the world. The newest such genus is Himalafurca from Nepal, formally described in April 2021 by Tanasevitch.[2] Since it is so difficult to identify such tiny spiders, there are regular changes in taxonomy as species are combined or divided.

Money spiders are known for drifting through the air via a technique termed "ballooning".[3]

Within the agriculture industry, money spiders are regarded as biological control agents against pest species like aphids and springtails.[4][5]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference hormiga2000 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference NMBE was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ jordancuff (2019-05-16). "Rolling in money spiders". Biocoenosis. Retrieved 2021-10-12.
  4. ^ Sunderland, K. D.; Fraser, A. M.; Dixon, A. F. G. (1986). "Field and Laboratory Studies on Money Spiders (Linyphiidae) as Predators of Cereal Aphids". Journal of Applied Ecology. 23 (2): 433–447. Bibcode:1986JApEc..23..433S. doi:10.2307/2404027. ISSN 0021-8901. JSTOR 2404027.
  5. ^ Harwood, James D.; Obrycki, John J. (2005-09-01). "Web-Construction Behavior of Linyphiid Spiders (Araneae, Linyphiidae): Competition and Co-Existence Within a Generalist Predator Guild". Journal of Insect Behavior. 18 (5): 593–607. Bibcode:2005JIBeh..18..593H. doi:10.1007/s10905-005-7013-8. ISSN 1572-8889. S2CID 30576829.