Spider identification location chart

With 41253 (30 April 2010) identified spiders and with probably more this amount of unidentified ones, it is difficult to identify a spider from a picture. The genitals of the male and female spider are used for professional identification. When a species is officially recorded the male and female are intensively described and the genitals are drawn. Often the eye-setting is also key feature to identify a spider. The last decade photography of the spider parts replaces drawings. An advantage of drawing still is; it can emphasise details that are lost in photographs. After identification the specimens are stored for further investigations when doubt arises about the name of the species. Officially described species are recorded in a database known as "The World Spider Catalog" of Norman Platnick. It was a hell of a task to reduce over 200 years of multiple naming of one species to a single unique name. In this database one can see how specie names are combined or moved to other genera. Name giving is volatile because identification is done by subjective features of the spider. Assigning a spiders to a family and genus is often discussable. DNA-sequencing can show more precisely in which genus and family a species belongs but is also subject to error.
	Drawings of male and female genitalia of an orb-weaving spider (Araneidae) by N. Duperre (in Framenau et. al. 2010).
For amateurs it is not always essential to find the exact name a of spider. Finding the family name of a spider is often more than enough. The family name often describes the behaviour of a spider well enough. For instance: Almost all wolf spider runs in packs before you feet away. That is why they were name wolf spider. It was long believed they hunted in packs like wolfs. A jumping spider jumps and belongs to a very large family called "jumping spiders" with 5245 species world wide. The two tables, the drawings of spiders and webs below will make it easier to identify a European spider. Together with the thumbnail page you can find the family or your spider in an easy way.
Click around. Success. ß Back	Left expanded pedipalp of Backobourkia heroine by N. Scharff & J. Coddington (in Framenau et. al. 2010).

>> Thumbnail page with European spider photos to identify the spider from a picture.

Identification by scientific name

		Inside and outside buildings	On or close to the ground	Under stones, logs, litter, et cetera	Low or medium foliage	Tall shrubs and trees, under bark	Rock, walls, caves, banks	Close to water or in water
No web, no retreat	Hunters	Salticidae	Gnaphosidae	Clubionidae	Anyphaenidae	Anyphaenidae	Dysderidae	Pisauridae
		Scytodidae	Pisauridae	Dysderidae	Clubionidae	Clubionidae	Mimetidae
			Salticidae	Gnaphosidae	Mimetidae	Gnaphosidae	Salticidae
			Zoridae	Liocranidae	Oxyopidae	Liocranidae	Segestriidae
				Oonopidae	Pisauridae	Salticidae
					Salticidae	Sparassidae
					Sparassidae
No web, no retreat	Ambushers, fishers				Philodromidae	Philodromidae		Pisauridae
No web, no retreat	Ambushers, fishers				Thomisidae	Thomisidae
Web	Orb	Uloboridae		Araneidae	Araneidae		Araneidae	Araneidae
				Uloboridae	Tetragnathidae		Metidae	Metidae
					Uloboridae		Uloboridae	Tetragnathidae
Web	Tangle	Pholcidae	Theridiidae	Theridiidae	Linyphiidae	Linyphiidae	Pholcidae
		Theridiidae			Theridiidae	Theridiidae	Nesticidae
							Theridiidae
Web	Sheet	Agelenidae	Hahniidae	Linyphiidae	Linyphiidae		Agelenidae
		Linyphiidae	Linyphiidae	Titanoecidae	Titanoecidae
		Zoropsidae
Burrow, mesh, tubular retreat		Agelenidae	Agelenidae	Atypidae	Dictynidae	Amaurobiidae	Oecobiidae	Agelenidae
		Amaurobiidae	Lycosidae	Clubionidae	Miturgidae	Dysderidae	Salticidae	Argyronetidae
		Oecobiidae	Eresidae	Gnaphosidae	Oxyopidae	Segestriidae		Lycosidae

Identification by common name

		Inside and outside buildings	On or close to the ground	Under stones, logs, litter, et cetera	Low or medium foliage	Tall shrubs and trees, under bark	Rock,walls, caves,banks	Close to water or in water
No web, no retreat	Hunters	Jumping	Flat-bellied ground	Sac	Tube	Tube	Long-fanged	Fishing / Nursery web
		Spitting	Fishing / Nursery web	Long-fanged	Sac	Sac	Pirate
			Jumping	Flat-bellied ground	Pirate	Flat-bellied ground	Jumping
			Wandering	Spiny–legged sac	Lynx	Spiny–legged sac
				Dwarf-hunting	Fishing / Nursery web	Jumping
					Jumping	Huntsman
					Huntsman
No web, no retreat	Ambushers, fishers				Small huntsman	Small huntsman		Fishing / Nursery web
No web, no retreat	Ambushers, fishers				Crab	Crab
Web	Orb	Single-line web		Orb web	Orb web		Orb web	Orb web
				Single-line web	Stretch		Orb stretch	Orb stretch
					Single-line web		Single-line web	Stretch
Web	Tangle	Daddy-long legs	Cob web	Cob web	Sheet web	Sheet web	Daddy-long legs
		Cob web			Cob web	Cob web	Cave cob web
							Cob web
Web	Sheet	Funnel weavers	Dwarf sheet	Sheet web	Sheet web		Funnel weavers
		Sheet web	Sheet web	Rock weaver	Rock weaver
		Ground
Burrow, mesh, tubular retreat		Funnel weavers	Funnel weavers	Purse web	Mesh web	Meshweb	Disc web	Funnel weavers
		Meshweb	Wolf	Sac	Prowling	Long-fanged	Jumping	Water
		Disc web	Lady bird / velvet	Flat-bellied ground	Lynx	Tube-web		Wolf

Agelenidae	Amaurobiidae	Araneidae	Atypidae	Clubionidae
Funnelweb spider	Meshweb weaver	Orbweb spider	Purseweb spider	Sac spider


Dictynidae	Dysderidae	Eresidae	Gnaphosidae	Linyphiidae
Meshweb spider	Cell spider	Lady bird spider	Ground spider	Sheet web spider


Lycosidae	Oonopidae	Oxyopidae	Philodromidae	Pholcidae
Wolf spider	Dwarf cell spider	Lynx spider	Crab spider	Daddy longleg


Pisauridae	Salticidae	Scytodidae	Segestriidae	Tetragnathidae
Big wolf spider	Jumping spider	Spitting spider	Six-eyed spider	Stretch spider


Theridiidae	Thomisidae	Uloboridae	Zodariidae	Zoridae
Scaffold web	Crab spider	Cribellate spider	Burrowing spider	Wandering spider

>> Thumbnail page with Australian spider photos to identify the spider from a picture.

(1) With permission from: Framenau, V. W. , Dupérré, N., Blackledge, T.A. and Vink, C.J. 2010. Systematics of the new Australian orb-weaving spider genus Backobourkia (Araneae: Araneidae). Arthropod Systematics and Phylogeny 68 , 79-111 .

Ed Nieuwenhuys, 11 may 2022
5 May 2010, April 1999

Spider identification location chart

>> Thumbnail page with European spider photos to identify the spider from a picture.

Identification by scientific name

Identification by common name

>> Thumbnail page with Australian spider photos to identify the spider from a picture.

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