ROMSO Cyprus Knowledge Base

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Zygiella atrica is a species of araneomorphic spider in the Phonognathidae family.

Distribution
This species is found in Europe. It was observed in France, Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Norway, southern Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Albania, Croatia, Italy, Malta, Cyprus, Spain, Portugal and Andorra.

It was introduced to the United States and Canada and Russia in Sakhaline.

Habitat
This species may occur outside buildings and in door and window openings. In nature, it loves shrubs, juniper, small pine trees, meadows and shorelines.

Description

Males measure from to and females from to .

Diagnosis
The anterior part of the cephalothorax is pale brownish yellow with a contour line and brown median. The abdomen is robust with a large greyish white area at the back, wavy black edges and a rusty brown spot on both sides. The legs are brownish yellow with narrow brown stripes.

Description of male

The shell is light yellowish brown. The head is darker and a short midrange. The edge sometimes has a narrow blackish line. The fovea is clearly visible. Chelicera are reddish brown with black hooks at the base. The sternum is yellowish brown and darker at the edge.

A pointed protruding part is present on the hip of leg IV. The legs are pale yellowish brown and weakly ringed.

The back of the abdomen is greyish, darker at the edges, reddish at the anterolate corners and back. The belly is grey with whitish dots. The lung operculum is yellowish white.

The palps are light reddish brown. The palps are much longer than the shell. The tibia is longer than cymbium and has long dense dorsal hairs. Paracymbium has a narrow tip. The length of the tegulum is almost parallel to the length of the cymbium. A median apophysis is present with 2 distal points. The embolus is very thin. The bulb has no terminal apophysis.

Description of female

The coloration of the female is similar to that of the male with the edge of the broad and blackish shell.

The anterior edge of the central opening of the epigyne is smooth. The copulatory canal is narrow and curved. The receptacles are oval and strongly sclerotized.

Reproduction
Adults are present from mid-July to late October and mating occurs in autumn. The female makes a light brown bag with a loose texture that can contain 80 brownish eggs.

Canvas
Zygiella atrica builds an orbicular canvas with 43 to 50 rays, a fine mesh hub and a narrow missing area.

Systematic and taxonomy
This species has been described under the protonym Eucharia atrica