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Oonopidae Opopaea

Opopaea deserticola Simon, 1891

Desert Dweller Goblin Spider

This is the "type species" of the genus Opopaea, meaning the genus was established with this species described and designated as its "typical representative". Although the holotype was collected in Saint Vincent in the Caribbean, the arachnologist who described it, Eugéne Simon, already knew that the species was widespread in warmer parts of the world, including countries with deserts such as Algeria and Egypt. This explains the origin of the name "deserticola", a combination of the root words for "desert" and "dwelling place". It appears that the species is readily dispersed by humans, presumably through the movement of international cargo.

Like O. apicalis. the overall body shape of O. deserticola is proportionately much longer and sleeker than that of either Opopaea spp. A & B. Also, like O. apicalis, the roof of the carapace does not bear any tubercles. However, the carapace has many spines that are stronger and longer than those in O. apicalis. Furthermore, O. deserticola can be distinguished from O. apicalis by having only an indistinct rhomboidal dark spot on the posterior dorsum. The O. deserticola female is easily recognised by a small but characteristic knob close to the epigastric groove.

Length♀ <2 mm; ♂ <2 mm
Type LocalitySaint Vincent
DistributionCosmopolitan, including Singapore, Philippines, China, Japan, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
HabitatInside dwellings (in Singapore). Elsewhere, among foliage and leaf litter, under rocks and in ground debris in gardens, plantations, grasslands and forests, but also within buildings.

Taxonomy

Type Deposits*

  1. Holotype

    California Academy of Sciences (CAS), San Francisco, USA; ♀ of Gamasomorpha rufa (destroyed in the earthquake in 1900) (Brescovit et al., 2019b)

  2. Holotype

    Museum of Comparative Zoology (MCZ), Harvard University, Cambridge, USA; ♂ of Opopaea darlingtoni (Brescovit et al., 2019b)

  3. Holotype

    Museum of Comparative Zoology (MCZ), Harvard University, Cambridge, USA; ♂ of Opopaea timida (Brescovit et al., 2019b)

  4. Holotype

    American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, USA; ♂ of Opopaea brasima (Brescovit et al., 2019b)

  5. Neotype

    British Museum of Natural History (BMNH)/Natural History Museum (NHMUK), London, UK; ♂ (coll. E. A Duffey, tube No. 4) of Opopaea euphorbicola (Sherwood, Dunlop & Sharp, 2024)

  6. Syntype

    Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin (ZMB), Germany; 2♀ (35217, lost) of Opopaea euphorbicola (Sherwood, Dunlop & Sharp, 2024)

  7. Syntype

    British Museum of Natural History (BMNH)/Natural History Museum (NHMUK), London, UK; 1♀ (Brescovit et al., 2019b)

Taxonomic references*

  1. Opopaea deserticola (Original description ♂♀)

    Simon, 1892e On the spiders of the island of St: 560, pl. 42, f. 5

  2. Gamasomorpha rufa (Original description ♀)

    Banks, 1898b Arachnida from Baja California and other parts of Mexico: 211, pl. 13, f. 12

  3. Opopaea euphorbicola (Original description ♀)

    Strand, 1909g Spinnentiere von Südafrika und einigen Inseln gesammelt bei der deutschen Südpolar-Expedition: 549

  4. Opopaea darlingtoni (Original description ♂)

    Bryant, 1940 Cuban spiders in the Museum of Comparative Zoology: 267, f. 5, 7

  5. Gamasomorpha floridana (♂, misidentified)

    Bryant, 1945c Notes on some Florida spiders: 199, f. 1-2

  6. Opopaea timida (Original description ♂)

    Chickering, 1951 The Oonopidae of Panama: 233, f. 20-21

  7. Opopaea brasima (Original description ♂♀)

    Chickering, 1969d The family Oonopidae (Araneae) in Florida: 148, f. 4-10 doi:10.1155/1969/27623

  8. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀, removed from Synonym of Opopaea punctata, rejecting Simon, 1911b: 309, Synonym of O. brasima and O. darlingtoni)

    Dumitrescu & Georgescu, 1983 Sur les Oonopidae (Araneae) de Cuba: 103, pl. 21

  9. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀)

    Saaristo, 2001a Dwarf hunting spiders or Oonopidae (Arachnida, Araneae) of the Seychelles: 333, f. 93A-98A, 99-101 doi:10.1163/187631201X00236

  10. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀)

    Saaristo & Marusik, 2008 A survey of African Opopaea Simon, 1891 (Arachnida, Aranei, Oonopidae): 22, f. 22-29, 137-146, 178, 194, 200, 210, 219, 226

  11. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀, Synonym of Opopaea timida)

    Platnick & Dupérré, 2009a The goblin spider genera Opopaea and Epectris (Araneae, Oonopidae) in the New World: 4, f. 1-72 doi:10.1206/664.1

  12. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀)

    Saaristo, 2010 Araneae: 134, f. 22.93-101

  13. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀)

    Tong & Li, 2010a The goblin spiders of the genus Opopaea (Araneae, Oonopidae) in Hainan Island, China: 35, f. 1Q, S-T, 7A-C doi:10.11646/zootaxa.2327.1.2

  14. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀)

    Burger, 2011a Structure and function of the female reproductive system in three species of goblin spiders (Arachnida: Araneae: Oonopidae): 149, f. 1A-B, 3A-E doi:10.1111/j.1744-7410.2011.00227.x

  15. Opopaea deserticola (♂)

    Ono, 2011b Spiders (Arachnida, Araneae) of the Ogasawara Islands, Japan: 442, f. 19-23

  16. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀)

    Tong, 2013 Haplogynae spiders from Hainan, China: 37, f. 25Q, S-T

  17. Opopaea deserticola (m♀, Synonym of Gamasomorpha rufa)

    Brescovit et al., 2019b To boldly go: on invasive goblin spiders in Brazil (Araneae, Oonopidae): 10, f. 36-40 doi:10.1590/1678-4766e2019033

  18. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀)

    Tang et al., 2021 A checklist of spiders from Yongxing Island, South China Sea, with taxonomic notes on four species of goblin spiders: 7, f. 6A-E, 7A-B doi:10.3897/BDJ.9.e67087

  19. Opopaea deserticola (♀)

    Gómez-Moreno, Chamé-Vázquez & Jiménez, 2023 Contribución al conocimiento de las arañas (Arachnida: Araneae) en Sonora, Noroeste de México: 8, f. 21-23 doi:10.21829/azm.2023.3912583

  20. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀)

    Suzuki, Hidaka & Tatsuta, 2023 Revision of goblin spiders (Araneae: Oonopidae) in the Nansei Islands, southwest Japan, with description of a new species: 226, f. 5A-F doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5323.2.3

  21. Opopaea deserticola (♀)

    Suzuki et al., 2023 Spiders (Araneae) collected from Kuchino-shima, Gaja-jima and Suwanosejima Islands, the Tokara Islands, Japan: 42, f. 3C-D

  22. Opopaea deserticola (♂♀, Synonym of Opopaea euphorbicola)

    Sherwood, Dunlop & Sharp, 2024 On the identity of Opopaea euphorbicola Strand, 1909 and first records of three other non-native goblin spiders from Ascension Island (Araneae: Oonopidae): 126, f. 1A-G doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5437.1.9

* Retrieved from the World Spider Catalog.

Distribution Map for Opopaea deserticola Simon, 1891

Cosmopolitan, including Singapore, Philippines, China, Japan, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

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