Information About Arachnids
- Arachnid
Photo Gallery
- Arachnid
Questions Answered - By Dr. Jerome Rovner at Ohio University
- Common and Scientific Names of Arachnids 2003 Edition
- Identification of the Brown Recluse Spider
- Links to Arachnological Sites Elsewhere on the World Wide Web
- Arachnological Societies and Meetings
- Graduate Study Programs in Arachnology
Arachnid Questions Answered
If you want
to know the identity of a spider or other arachnid you have encountered,
send a digital photo of it to Dr.
Rovner at jsrovner@gmail.com. Only e-mails with attached
sharp, close-up photos will yield a response. Words alone do not
suffice.
Otherwise, use the following methods:
- BEST METHOD: Compare the spider with pictures provided in an illustrated guide such as SPIDERS AND THEIR KIN by Levi et al (St. Martin's Press. ISBN 1582381569), available in local bookstores and the internet for about $7 or less.
- ALTERNATIVE METHOD: Examine pictures via the Internet: We have some at our site, and we provide links to other arachnology sites on the web. In particular, you should try the following sites:
If you have other questions please email Dr. Rovner at jsrovner@gmail.com. Provide as much detail as you can.
Links to Arachnological Sites Elsewhere on the World Wide Web
- Herman Vanuytven's site "Arachnology - The Study of Arachnids" Very complete and with links to over 1000 sites, continually expanded.
- The World Spider Catalog. by Dr. Norman I. Platnick of the American Museum of Natural History with Peter Merret and H. Don Cameron. It attempts to include "all descriptions of new species; .. all post-Roewer transfers or synonymies of previously described taxa; .. and all taxonomically useful (i.e., illustrated) references to previously described taxa".
- Common Names of Arachnids . -- A concordance of scientific and common names; download as pdf.
- The Tarantula Bibliography by Michael Jacobi, a well-done and complete website devoted to helping folks successfully keep tarantulas. Information about husbandry, natural history and a list of other resources.
- Awesome Spiders -- Pete Carmichael's website features over 500 stunning spider photos (most from US and the neotropics). According to Pete, the site "was designed primarily for older kids and curious adults". I would add that any serious arachnologist would also greatly enjoy the site -- I sure did and will again the future.
- The Scorpion Files -- Jan Ove Rein's excellent site contains information about and pictures of scorpions; also literature citations, and weblinks.
- Spiders and Arachnids (UC Riverside)
- Araneoid Spider Systematics Research Page: monographic research on the systematics of groups of linyphiids, tetragnathids and theridiids.
- California Jumping Spiders -- great photos and information on the evolution of the genus Habronattus
- The spiders of the Kaweah Oaks (CA) Preserve -- photos, natural history, check list.
- The Colorado Spider Survey: Information on the Colorado Spider Survey and a searchable database of Rocky Mountain spiders
- The Spiders of Kentucky: common Kentucky spiders
- A Guide to Missouri Spiders -- nice photos and descriptions of some of the spiders found in Missouri and adjacent states. Also general information on spiders. Maintained by the Conservation Commission of Missouri
- The Ohio Spider Survey: The spiders of Ohio and more!
- Spider Conservation in the USA by Kevin L. Skerl
- Bites and stings of medically important arthropods (UC Riverside)
- Identification of the Brown Recluse
- The Hobo Spider Web Site
- Tree of Life -- Arachnida (sometimes unresponsive0
- Garden Spiders (Argiopes) of the USA
- South India Spiders -- a visually pleasing and very informative website dealing with spiders in general and specifically those found in southern India. Brought to all of the world by the Division of Arachnology in the Zoology Department at Sacred Heart College in Cochin, Kerala, India.
- Spiders of Northwest Europe
- "Baboon Spiders" -- Theraphosids and "tarantula"-like spiders of Africa and the Middle East.
- Arachnology section of the Senckenberg Museum, Frankfurt, Germany. Site is in German but there are a number of very nice photos of spiders.
- Kari's Scorpion Pages -- a personal site maintained by Kari J. McWest. Although different from the sites above in that it contains lots of personal information probably not of arachnological interest, the site does contain a series of links to other websites that feature annotated checklists to the scorpions of the United States.
- Conspicuous Spiders of Orange County - a pictoral guide to the common and conspicuous spiders of Orange County CA, a work in progress by Lenny Vincent
Arachnological Societies and Meetings
- A Listing of Arachnological Societies and Journals, maintained on Wikipedia
- The British Arachnological Society
- The Canadian Arachnologist -- (may be defunct January 2012) an annual newsletter (since 2000) available for free on the web the first week of May. The goals of this newsletter are to profile Canadian arachnologists, publish feature articles, announce conference details and other news of value, help foster a sense of community and encourage collaboration. Also featured is a dynamic Nearctic Spider Database, which provides species lists across North America, distribution maps, and the capability of searching for specimens. Contributions to this database may be made from learned institutions and individual collectors.
- The International Society of Arachnology: the organizers of the International Congress of Arachnology (every three years) and publishers of the invaluable Liste des Travaux Arachnologiques. Note: much information at this site is password-protected and available only to ISA members.
- NEW: The Peckham Society : Gem of a website devoted to salticids that includes videos, photos, and publications of the Society's journal Peckhamia.
- The American Tarantula Society -- all about tarantulas
- Arachnologische Gesellschaft website -- this site is mostly in German. Here one can find information on the Society's activities, publications, meetings, and also obtain checklists for arachnids of north-central Europe and links to many European arachnological societies.
- Grupo Ibérico de Aracnologia -- Homepage of the GIA, site is in Spanish