Yellow sac spider
| Yellow sac spider | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| C. mildei | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Family: | Eutichuridae |
| Genus: |
Cheiracanthium C. L. Koch, 1839 |
| Species | |
|
C.erraticum |
|
| Diversity | |
| 194 species | |
C.erraticum
C. inclusum
C. japonicum
C. lawrencei
C. mildei
C. mordax
C. punctorium
C. socotrense
C. virescens
many more
Cheiracanthium is a genus of spiders in the Eutichuridae family. Certain species are commonly known as the "yellow sac spider".
Cheiracanthium are usually pale in colour, and have an abdomen that can range from yellow to beige. Both sexes range in size from 5 to 10 mm. Some yellow sac spiders are attracted to the smell of volatiles in gasoline. Of all "common house spiders", they are the only species whose tarsi do not point either outward (like Tegenaria) or inward (like Araneus), and are therefore easy to identify.
Cheiracanthium is primarily an Old World genus, with many species found from northern Europe to Japan, from Southern Africa to India and Australia. The only known species in the New World are C. inclusum and C. mildei. While the former also occurs in Africa and Réunion, the latter is found in the Holarctic region and Argentina. They can also be found in the lower mainland of British Columbia, Canada.
The genus is quite diverse in Africa and at least three or four species are known to occur in Egyptian cotton fields alone. Members of Cheiracanthium are documented beneficial predators in agricultural fields and are also known to be mildly venomous to humans. The yellow sac spider, Cheiracanthium inclusum, has been studied more than the other species in regard to its role in controlling pest insects in the southeastern United States.
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Wikipedia