Spiders (Class Arachnida, Order Araneae) are terrestrial arthropods with eight legs and fanged jaws (chelicerae) that inject venom. The head and thorax are joined in a cephalothorax. A fifth pair of appendages, the palps, flanks the fangs.
Spiders are one of the most diverse orders among all organisms. More than 45,000 species in 114 families are currently recognized, and it is possible that an equal number of species remain to be discovered or distinguished. Spiders occupy a great variety of niches and have a correspondingly diverse array of lifestyles. They are found almost everywhere except Antarctica.
Spiders in the UAE
Spiders remain one of the least studied of the commonly recognized animal groups found in the UAE. No comprehensive collection effort has yet been undertaken.
The first summary account was Spiders of the United Arab Emirates: An Introductory Catalogue (Feulner & Roobas 2015). In the catalogue, a selection of more than 85 common and/or distinctive spiders found in the UAE is presented, including more than 55 genera in 24 families. Basic habitat and behavioral data are given for most entries.
Additional UAE spider records from several other publications are included in the index to the catalogue, covering 7 families and 52 species, so the catalogue includes the vast majority of UAE spider records to date. A further 10 species were recognized and illustrated in an update to the catalogue (Roobas & Feulner 2016).
The catalogue and the update form the primary basis for this website. The catalogue is primarily the product of dedicated attention by the authors jointly from 2012 through 2015, including field visits to diverse environments, photographic recording, collection and examination of specimens, and literature research (including online sites and images), supplemented by expert advice. Joint field work was concentrated in Dubai and the Northern Emirates. Information from Abu Dhabi Emirate relies on earlier opportunistic observations by Feulner and other UAE naturalists.
Invitation to Contribute
Our efforts to date do not exhaust the number of still unidentified species represented in our own photographs and collections, much less all of those that remain to be recognized. To facilitate general reference and ongoing study, the authors have established this website for the purpose of maintaining UAE spider records and basic information. Observers wishing to contribute are invited to use contact form.
Spider Identification
The identification and classification of spiders, like the taxonomy of most arthropod groups, is very much a matter for specialists in the first instance. In many cases spiders can be identified to family by examination of the arrangement of the eyes and selected aspects of gross morphology, sometimes coupled with behavioral phenomena such as web or burrow construction.
At the species level, however, spider taxonomy typically relies on features requiring microscopic examination, particularly the anatomy of the male and female reproductive structures. For this reason mature specimens are required; in their absence, spider taxonomists sometimes resort to the technique of trying to raise juvenile specimens to adulthood.
It is only once these fundamental relationships have been sorted out that it may become possible, within known spider faunas, to rely on associated macroscopic features to make confident determinations. Otherwise, macroscopic features visible in the field or in hand are in many cases not a reliable basis for positive identification.
Most spiders are sexually dimorphic, sometimes dramatically so. Males are typically smaller than females but frequently have relatively longer legs. In males, the terminal segments of the palps are modified into copulatory organs having a more or less bulbous shape. These makes it relatively easy to recognize male spiders.
Spiders are one of the most diverse orders among all organisms. More than 45,000 species in 114 families are currently recognized, and it is possible that an equal number of species remain to be discovered or distinguished. Spiders occupy a great variety of niches and have a correspondingly diverse array of lifestyles. They are found almost everywhere except Antarctica.
Spiders in the UAE
Spiders remain one of the least studied of the commonly recognized animal groups found in the UAE. No comprehensive collection effort has yet been undertaken.
The first summary account was Spiders of the United Arab Emirates: An Introductory Catalogue (Feulner & Roobas 2015). In the catalogue, a selection of more than 85 common and/or distinctive spiders found in the UAE is presented, including more than 55 genera in 24 families. Basic habitat and behavioral data are given for most entries.
Additional UAE spider records from several other publications are included in the index to the catalogue, covering 7 families and 52 species, so the catalogue includes the vast majority of UAE spider records to date. A further 10 species were recognized and illustrated in an update to the catalogue (Roobas & Feulner 2016).
The catalogue and the update form the primary basis for this website. The catalogue is primarily the product of dedicated attention by the authors jointly from 2012 through 2015, including field visits to diverse environments, photographic recording, collection and examination of specimens, and literature research (including online sites and images), supplemented by expert advice. Joint field work was concentrated in Dubai and the Northern Emirates. Information from Abu Dhabi Emirate relies on earlier opportunistic observations by Feulner and other UAE naturalists.
Invitation to Contribute
Our efforts to date do not exhaust the number of still unidentified species represented in our own photographs and collections, much less all of those that remain to be recognized. To facilitate general reference and ongoing study, the authors have established this website for the purpose of maintaining UAE spider records and basic information. Observers wishing to contribute are invited to use contact form.
Spider Identification
The identification and classification of spiders, like the taxonomy of most arthropod groups, is very much a matter for specialists in the first instance. In many cases spiders can be identified to family by examination of the arrangement of the eyes and selected aspects of gross morphology, sometimes coupled with behavioral phenomena such as web or burrow construction.
At the species level, however, spider taxonomy typically relies on features requiring microscopic examination, particularly the anatomy of the male and female reproductive structures. For this reason mature specimens are required; in their absence, spider taxonomists sometimes resort to the technique of trying to raise juvenile specimens to adulthood.
It is only once these fundamental relationships have been sorted out that it may become possible, within known spider faunas, to rely on associated macroscopic features to make confident determinations. Otherwise, macroscopic features visible in the field or in hand are in many cases not a reliable basis for positive identification.
Most spiders are sexually dimorphic, sometimes dramatically so. Males are typically smaller than females but frequently have relatively longer legs. In males, the terminal segments of the palps are modified into copulatory organs having a more or less bulbous shape. These makes it relatively easy to recognize male spiders.