Communal
Guides
Holocnemus
cellar spiders
Holocnemus is a genus of cellar spiders (family Pholcidae) first described by Eugène Louis Simon in 1873. The genus is distinguished by dark marks on the leg femora and tibiae in both sexes, a trait shared with related genera Crossopriza, Stygopholcus, and Maghreba. As of October 2025, the genus comprises four species, with H. pluchei being the most widely distributed due to human-mediated introduction outside its native range.
Uloboridae
hackled orb weavers, cribellate orb weavers
Uloboridae is a family of spiders distinguished by their lack of venom glands, a secondarily evolved trait unique among arachnids. Instead of venom, they subdue prey through extensive silk wrapping and compression, followed by external digestion using regurgitated enzymes. Members of this family are known as cribellate orb weavers, producing specialized silk from an additional spinning organ called the cribellum, which is combed into tangled, non-sticky capture threads. The family includes both traditional orb web builders and species with reduced web structures, such as the triangle spiders of genus Hyptiotes.