Antrodiaetus

Ausserer, 1871

folding trapdoor spiders, turret spiders

Antrodiaetus is a of mygalomorph in the Antrodiaetidae, first described by Anton Ausserer in 1871. The genus includes found in the United States and Japan, with the name derived from Greek roots meaning 'cave-dwelling.' These spiders are commonly known as folding trapdoor spiders or turret spiders due to their distinctive burrow architecture. Research on Antrodiaetus has been significant in arachnological studies of species delimitation, particularly using molecular approaches to reveal cryptic diversity in morphologically similar .

Antrodiaetus unicolor by (c) Marshal Hedin, some rights reserved (CC BY). Used under a CC-BY license.

Antrodiaetus unicolor by (c) Ken-ichi Ueda, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Ken-ichi Ueda. Used under a CC-BY license.

Pronunciation

How to pronounce Antrodiaetus: /ˌæntrədaɪˈeɪtəs/

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Images

Distribution

United States and Japan

Behavior

Low-; constructs burrows with turret-like entrance structures (folding trapdoors)

More Details

Etymology

The name Antrodiaetus combines the Greek 'antrodiaitos' (αντροδιαιτος), meaning 'living in caves,' from 'antron' (αντρον), 'cave,' and 'diaita' (διαιτα), 'way of life, dwelling.'

Research significance

Antrodiaetus has served as a model system for studies of cryptic delimitation using integrative approaches combining molecular data (RADseq, 3RAD), , and modeling. The A. unicolor and A. riversi have been particularly important in demonstrating how low- mygalomorph can harbor substantial unrecognized .