Actinopodidae
Encyclopedia
The spider family Actinopodidae is a family of mygalomorph
spiders found in Australia
, South America
, and Central America
. It includes the Australian genus Missulena, known as the mouse spider
s, which are quite venomous.
Mygalomorphae
The Mygalomorphae, , are an infraorder of spiders. The latter name comes from the orientation of the fangs which point straight down and do not cross each other .-Description:...
spiders found in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
. It includes the Australian genus Missulena, known as the mouse spider
Mouse spider
Mouse spiders are spiders of the genus Missulena, in the mygalomorph family Actinopodidae. There are 11 known species in this genus, all but one of which are indigenous to Australia. One species, M. tussulena, is found in Chile...
s, which are quite venomous.
Genera
- ActinopusActinopusActinopus is a genus of spiders in the Actinopodidae family. All its species occur in South America.-Species:* Actinopus caraiba * Actinopus ceciliae Mello-Leitão, 1931...
Perty, 1833 — South America - Missulena WalckenaerCharles Athanase WalckenaerBaron Charles Athanase Walckenaer was a French civil servant and scientist.-Biography:Walckenaer was born in Paris and studied at the universities of Oxford and Glasgow. In 1793 he was appointed head of the military transports in the Pyrenees, after which he pursued technical studies at the École...
, 1805 — Australia, Chile - PlesiolenaPlesiolenaPlesiolena is a small genus of spiders in the Actinopodidae family, with only two species.-Species:* Plesiolena bonneti * Plesiolena jorgelina Goloboff, 1994 -External links:*...
Goloboff & PlatnickNorman I. PlatnickNorman I. Platnick is an American arachnologist, and the Peter J. Solomon Family Curator of the invertebrate zoology department of the American Museum of Natural History. A 1973 Ph.D...
, 1987 — Chile