Uloborus

{{Short description|Genus of spiders}} {{Automatic taxobox | image = Uloborus plumipes side 2.jpg | image_caption = ''Uloborus plumipes'' | image2 = Uloborus glomosus 551986432.jpg | image2_caption = ''Uloborus glomosus'' | taxon = Uloborus | authority = Latreille, 1806 | diversity_link = | diversity = 80 species | subdivision_ranks = Species | subdivision = See text }}

'''''Uloborus''''' is a spider genus in the family Uloboridae with 79 described species.

==Distribution== Most species occur in the tropics and subtropics, with only a few species in northern America and Europe.

==Life style== thumb|left|''U. campestratus'' with egg sac

''Uloborus'' spiders build small orb-webs with cribellate silk. The hub is often meshed or strengthened with a stabilimentum that varies in shape, with the most common configuration being a linear silk band.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />

The web is usually tugged forcefully as the spider approaches the prey to locate it and entangle it further. The first, and to a lesser extent the second legs, are used for tugging. The front legs are used to lightly touch the prey. Hanging from the first and second legs, the spider uses the fourth pair of legs to throw silk onto the prey to subdue it. The spider faces away from the prey while wrapping it. The silk entangles the thrashing limbs, preventing injury to the spider. They prey on a variety of flying insects.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />

Uloborids lack venom glands and use digestive enzymes that are poured onto the prey to kill them. The silk wrapped around the prey becomes transparent after absorbing some of the enzymes. Spiders are frequently seen with large prey masses in their mouths.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />

==Description== The chelicerae of these cribellate spiders are robust, but, like all Uloboridae, there are no venom glands. Eight small eyes are present.

The carapace is pear-shaped. The cephalic and thoracic regions of females are level, with the thoracic depression being a shallow pit. The cephalic region of males is curved slightly downward from the thoracic depression. The eight eyes are arranged in two rows and both eye rows are recurved.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />

The abdomen is longer than wide with 1-2 humps. The colour of the body is usually dull shades of cream, grey or brown, usually with markings.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />

Legs I and IV are longer than the other legs. The tibiae I have a brush of long setae in some species.<ref name="dippenaar2020" />

{{clear}} ==Species== <gallery mode=packed heights=140px> Bearded-legs Uloborid (Uloborus barbipes) 140548622.jpg|''U. barbipes'' Uloborus campestratus 184011335.jpg|''U. campestratus'' Feater legged Orbweaver - 08.22.15.jpg|''U. plumipes'' Uloborus walckenaerius.jpg|''U. walckenaerius'' </gallery>

{{as of|2025|10}}, this genus includes 72 species and five subspecies:<ref name="wsc" /> {{Div col}} * ''Uloborus albescens'' O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1885 – Pakistan, India * ''Uloborus albofasciatus'' Chrysanthus, 1967 – New Guinea * ''Uloborus albolineatus'' Mello-Leitão, 1941 – Argentina * ''Uloborus ater'' Mello-Leitão, 1917 – Brazil * ''Uloborus aureus'' Vinson, 1863 – Madagascar * ''Uloborus barbipes'' L. Koch, 1872 – Australia (Queensland) * ''Uloborus berlandi'' Roewer, 1951 – Guinea * ''Uloborus biconicus'' Yin & Hu, 2012 – China * ''Uloborus bigibbosus'' Simon, 1905 – India * ''Uloborus bispiralis'' Opell, 1982 – New Guinea * ''Uloborus campestratus'' Simon, 1893 – USA to Venezuela * ''Uloborus canescens'' C. L. Koch, 1844 – Colombia * ''Uloborus cellarius'' Yin & Yan, 2012 – China * ''Uloborus chinmoyiae'' Biswas & Raychaudhuri, 2013 – Bangladesh * ''Uloborus conus'' Opell, 1982 – New Guinea * ''Uloborus crucifaciens'' Hingston, 1927 – Myanmar * ''Uloborus cubicus'' (Thorell, 1898) – Myanmar * ''Uloborus diversus'' Marx, 1898 – United States, Mexico * ''Uloborus eberhardi'' Opell, 1981 – Costa Rica * ''Uloborus elongatus'' Opell, 1982 – Argentina * ''Uloborus emarginatus'' Kulczyński, 1908 – Indonesia (Java) * ''Uloborus filidentatus'' Hingston, 1932 – Guyana * ''Uloborus filifaciens'' Hingston, 1927 – India (Andaman Is.) * ''Uloborus filinodatus'' Hingston, 1932 – Guyana * ''Uloborus formosanus'' Yoshida, 2012 – Taiwan * ''Uloborus formosus'' Marx, 1898 – Mexico * ''Uloborus furunculus'' Simon, 1906 – India * ''Uloborus gilvus'' (Blackwall, 1870) – Italy, Greece * ''Uloborus glomosus'' (Walckenaer, 1841) – Canada, United States, Mexico * ''Uloborus guangxiensis'' Zhu, Sha & Chen, 1989 – China * ''Uloborus humeralis'' van Hasselt, 1882 – Myanmar, Indonesia (Sumatra, Java) ** ''U. h. marginatus'' Kulczyński, 1908 – Indonesia (Java) * ''Uloborus inaequalis'' Kulczyński, 1908 – New Guinea * ''Uloborus jabalpurensis'' Bhandari & Gajbe, 2001 – India * ''Uloborus jarrei'' Berland & Millot, 1940 – Guinea * ''Uloborus kerevatensis'' Opell, 1991 – Papua New Guinea * ''Uloborus khasiensis'' Tikader, 1969 – India * ''Uloborus krishnae'' Tikader, 1970 – India (mainland, Nicobar Is.) * ''Uloborus leucosagma'' Thorell, 1895 – Myanmar * ''Uloborus limbatus'' Thorell, 1895 – Myanmar * ''Uloborus llastay'' Grismado, 2002 – Argentina * ''Uloborus lugubris'' (Thorell, 1895) – Myanmar * ''Uloborus metae'' Opell, 1981 – Colombia * ''Uloborus minutus'' Mello-Leitão, 1915 – Brazil * ''Uloborus modestus'' Thorell, 1891 – India (Nicobar Is.) * ''Uloborus montifer'' Marples, 1955 – Samoa * ''Uloborus niger'' Mello-Leitão, 1917 – Brazil * ''Uloborus oculatus'' Kulczyński, 1908 – Singapore * ''Uloborus parvulus'' Schmidt, 1976 – Canary Islands * ''Uloborus penicillatoides'' Xie, Peng, Zhang, Gong & Kim, 1997 – China * ''Uloborus pictus'' Thorell, 1898 – Myanmar * ''Uloborus pinnipes'' Thorell, 1877 – Indonesia (Sulawesi) * ''Uloborus planipedius'' Simon, 1897 – South Africa * ''Uloborus plumipes'' Lucas, 1846 – Europe, Africa, Yemen, Iran, Pakistan. Introduced to Argentina, Philippines, Japan ** ''U. p. javanus'' Kulczyński, 1908 – Indonesia (Java) * ''Uloborus pteropus'' (Thorell, 1887) – Myanmar * ''Uloborus rufus'' Schmidt & Krause, 1995 – Cape Verde * ''Uloborus scutifaciens'' Hingston, 1927 – Myanmar * ''Uloborus segregatus'' Gertsch, 1936 – USA to Colombia, Galapagos * ''Uloborus sexfasciatus'' Simon, 1893 – Philippines * ''Uloborus shendurneyensis'' Asima, Sudhikumar & Prasad, 2021 – India * ''Uloborus spelaeus'' Bristowe, 1952 – Malaysia * ''Uloborus strandi'' (Caporiacco, 1940) – Ethiopia * ''Uloborus tenuissimus'' L. Koch, 1872 – Samoa * ''Uloborus tetramaculatus'' Mello-Leitão, 1940 – Brazil * ''Uloborus trifasciatus'' Thorell, 1890 – Indonesia (Sunda Is.) * ''Uloborus trilineatus'' Keyserling, 1883 – Mexico to Argentina * ''Uloborus umboniger'' Kulczyński, 1908 – Sri Lanka * ''Uloborus undulatus'' Thorell, 1878 – Indonesia, (Java) ** ''U. u. indicus'' Kulczyński, 1908 – Malaysia ** ''U. u. obscurior'' Kulczyński, 1908 – New Guinea ** ''U. u. pallidior'' Kulczyński, 1908 – Indonesia, (Java) * ''Uloborus vanillarum'' Vinson, 1863 – Madagascar * ''Uloborus velutinus'' Butler, 1883 – Madagascar * ''Uloborus villosus'' Keyserling, 1881 – Colombia * ''Uloborus viridimicans'' Simon, 1893 – Philippines * ''Uloborus walckenaerius'' Latreille, 1806 – Madeira, Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia (Europe to Far East), Iraq, Iran, Kazakhstan, Central Asia, China, Korea, Japan. Introduced to Cape Verde, St. Helena, South Africa (type species) {{Div col end}}

==References== {{Reflist|refs= <ref name="wsc">{{cite web | url=https://wsc.nmbe.ch/genus/3810 | title=Gen. ''Uloborus'' Latreille, 1806 | publisher=World Spider Catalog | doi=10.24436/2 | accessdate=2025-10-05}}</ref> <ref name="dippenaar2020">{{cite book | last1=Dippenaar-Schoeman | first1=A.S. | last2=Haddad | first2=C.R. | last3=Foord | first3=S.H. | last4=Lotz | first4=L.N. | year=2020 | title=The Uloboridae of South Africa. Version 1 | publisher=South African National Survey of Arachnida Photo Identification Guide | page=17 | doi=10.5281/zenodo.7162209}}{{Creative Commons text attribution notice|cc=by4}}</ref> }}

Category:Uloboridae Category:Araneomorphae genera Category:Cosmopolitan spiders Category:Taxa named by Pierre André Latreille