Alopecosa

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Alopecosa
female A. fabrilis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Lycosidae
Genus: Alopecosa
Simon, 1885[1]
Species

See text.

Alopecosa is a spider genus in the family Lycosidae (wolf spiders), with about 160 species. They have a largely Eurasian distribution, although some species are found in North Africa and North America.

Life cycle[edit]

Most species grow up to 2 cm. Alopecosa females make a burrow in which they deposit their egg sac. The female then stays in the burrow guarding the sac until the eggs hatch.[citation needed]

Taxonomy[edit]

Alopecosa inquilina

The species in this genus have been traditionally grouped into sibling species complexes (groups) based on morphological characters, but, as morphology-based taxonomy can be unreliable, alternative methods have also been employed to identify species correctly. For example, differences in observed courtship and copulation behaviour have proved to be a useful tool for species identification and delimitation, particularly in cryptic species.[2] Molecular techniques have also been applied to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships between some species.[2]

Species[edit]

As of January 2021, the World Spider Catalog accepted the following species:[1]

Dubious names[edit]

Nomina dubia (dubious names) include:[1]

  • Alopecosa reimoseri (Kolosváry, 1934)
  • Alopecosa strandi (Roșca, 1936)

Distribution and habitat[edit]

The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution. The majority of species are native to Eurasia, although some species occur in Africa, and others are found in North and South America.[1] Alopecosa fabrilis is a critically endangered species found in Britain, with examples rediscovered in 2020 in the south of the country.[3] They favor dry climates.[citation needed]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d "Gen. Alopecosa Simon, 1885", World Spider Catalog, Natural History Museum Bern, retrieved 2021-01-13
  2. ^ a b Just, Pavel; Opatova, Vera; Dolejš, Petr (2018). "Does reproductive behaviour reflect phylogenetic relationships? An example from Central European Alopecosa wolf spiders (Araneae: Lycosidae)". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 185: 1039–1056. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zly060.
  3. ^ "Great Fox-Spider rediscovered on MoD land in Surrey". 31 October 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Alopecosa.
  • Picture of A. accentuata
  • Chen, Jun; Song, Da-Xiang & Gao, Jiu-Chun (2000), "Two new species of the genus Alopecosa Simon (Araneae: Lycosidae) from Inner Mongolia, China", Zoological Studies 39(2): 133–137, PDF
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