Dictynidae
Nigma walckenaeri
The Kräuselspinnen ( Dictynidae ) are a family of mostly small spiders, which includes 563 species in 48 genera worldwide.
Appearance and Body
Kräuselspinnen are all small spiders maximum of four millimeters height. Many species are inconspicuous brown in color, but some flashy colorful, such as the bright green Nigma walckenaeri.
Kräuselspinnen are cribellate spiders, so make with their special spinning apparatus, no glue threads ago, but a particularly fine and crimped staple wool. This is spun into irregular networks in plants. In these fine networks, insects hopelessly entangled and thus become the prey of Kräuselspinnen.
Lifestyle and deposits
Kräuselspinnen come in Central Europe in different habitats; on shrubs, dry grass, on trees and bushes. Dictyna arundinacea preferably, the inflorescence of dried plants such as tansy or various umbelliferous plants. Nigma flavescens, however, is often found on the undersides of oak leaves. Species such as Dictyna arundinacea are extremely common and can be found almost anywhere where there are suitable sites, also along roadsides and ruderal areas.
During the summer mating takes place. The male vibrates gently on the power of the female, not even to become the prey. During mating, the male holds the chelicerae of the female with his own chelicerae. After mating, the males then living for a time with the female in a network until it dies. The female spins a cocoon in her web, defining, in their eggs.
Genera and species
The most important occurring in Central Europe genera and species are:
- Cicurina ( amount 1871)
- Dictyna ( Sundevall, 1833) Dictyna arundinacea (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Nigma flavescens ( Walckenaer, 1830)
- Nigma puella (Simon, 1870)
- Nigma walckenaeri ( Roewer, 1951)