List of arachnids of Ireland

Dicranopalpus ramosus, a harvestman found in southern coastal parts of Ireland.[1]
Oligolophus tridens, a harvestman found all over Ireland.[2]
Chelifer cancroides, a pseudoscorpion found in Ireland. The abdomen is short and rounded at the rear, rather than extending into a segmented tail and stinger like a true scorpion, of which there are none in Ireland.[3]
Ixodes ricinus, the castor bean tick, which spreads the pathogens that cause Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis.[1]
Trombidium holosericeum, a red velvet mite that lives in soil and feeds on insects.[4]
Pholcus phalangioides, the skull spider, found in County Kerry.[5]
Egg sac of Ero furcata, a pirate spider found in coastal parts of Ireland.[6]
Female snake-back spider (Segestria senoculata).[7]
European cave spider (Meta menardi), recorded in Kerry.
A female Enoplognatha ovata on a Daucus carota; this spider is found in coastal parts of Ireland, especially in the southeast.[8]
Giant house spider (Eratigena atrica), common in the Midlands.[9]
Clubiona trivialis, a sac spider very common in the Midlands.[10]

There are approximately 1,107 species of arachnid native to Ireland.[11] Not up to date for all taxa. Arachnids are eight-legged chelicerate arthropods with pedipalps and bodies divided into two tagmata.

The most best known and familiar group in Ireland is the spiders, and there are also several species of harvestman (daddy-long-legs), ticks, mites and pseudoscorpions. Arachnid groups absent from Ireland include true scorpions, whip scorpions, solifuges, cave spiders, microwhip scorpions, hooded tick spiders and tarantulas.

Subclass Dromopoda

Order Opiliones (harvestmen / daddy-long-legs)

15 native species and three species which are not considered to be native: Odiella spinosus, Opilio parietinus (Phalangiidae) and Dicranopalpus ramosus (Leiobunidae)

Family Trogulidae

Order Pseudoscorpionida (false scorpions)

17 species

Family Chthonidae

Subclass Acari (ticks and mites)

At least 684 species

Order Ixodida (ticks)

Family Ixodidae

10 species

Family Argasidae (soft ticks)

2 species

Order Prostigmata (sucking true mites)

249 species

Family Alycidae

4 species

5 species

Family Bdellidae

5 species

1 species

Family Eriophyidae (gall mites)

52 species [12]

7 species

Family Eupodidae

2 species

Family Eylaidae

3 species

Family Halacaridae (marine mites)

44 species

1 species

2 species [13]

2 species

6 species

11 species

2 species

3 species

4 species

Family Mideidae

1 species

1 species

2 species

Family Oxidae

1 species

2 species

2 species

Family Pionidae

14 species

1 species

4 species

1 species

7 species

3 species

1 species

14 species

6 species

1 species

9 species

1 species

Family Tydeidae

15 species

6 species

Suborder Oribatida (moss mites / beetle mites)

173 species have been identified for the Republic of Ireland

4 species

1 species

7 species

1 species

Family Belbidae

1 species

19 species

1 species

Family Camisiidae

6 species

Family Cepheidae

3 species

1 species

1species

Family Euzetidae

2 species

7 species

2 species

Family Liodidae

1 species

6 species

4 species

4 species

Family Nothridae

2 species

1 species

4 species

Suborder Brachypylina

5 species

12 species

4 species

1 species

1 species

Family Damaeidae

3 species

Family Eremaeidae

1 species

Family Galumnidae

2 species

1 species

1 species

1 species

Family Liacaridae

4 species

2 species

1 species

1 species

1 species

Family Oppiidae

16 species

3 species

7 species

1 species

8 species

1 species

1 species

1 species

1 species

2 species

2 species

2 species

6 species

1 species

2 species

Family Xenillidae

1 species

Suborder Astigmatina

Family Tarsonemidae (thread-footed mites / white mites)

  • Some species

Family Trombidiidae (red velvet mites)

Order Araneae (spiders)

390 species belonging to 31 families

Family Agelenidae (funnel-web spiders)

Family Amaurobiidae (tangled nest spiders)

Family Araneidae (typical orb-weavers)

Family Atypidae (purseweb spiders)

Family Clubionidae (sac spiders)

Family Cybaeidae

Family Dictynidae

Family Dysderidae (woodlouse hunters)

Family Gnaphosidae (flat-bellied ground spiders)

Family Hahniidae (dwarf sheet spiders)

Family Linyphiidae (sheet weavers)

Family Liocranidae (Liocranid sac spiders)

Family Lycosidae (wolf spiders)

Family Mimetidae (pirate spiders)

Family Miturgidae

Family Nesticidae (scaffold web spiders)

Family Oonopidae (goblin spiders)

Family Philodromidae (running crab spiders)

Family Pholcidae (cellar spiders)

Family Pisauridae (nursery web spiders)

Family Salticidae (jumping spiders)

Family Segestriidae (tube-dwelling spiders)

Family Scytodidae

Family Tetragnathidae (long-jawed orb weavers)

Family Theridiidae (tangle-web spiders)

Family Theridiosomatidae (ray spiders)

Family Thomisidae (crab spiders)

Family Uloboridae (hackled orb weavers)

See also

Encyclopedia of Life online has many images via search Dictynoidea Placements

References

  1. ^ a b "Species Details".
  2. ^ "Species Details".
  3. ^ "Species Details".
  4. ^ "Red Velvet Mite - Red Earth Mite - Trombidium holosericeum".
  5. ^ "Species Details".
  6. ^ "Species Browser".
  7. ^ "Species Details".
  8. ^ "Species Details".
  9. ^ "Species Details".
  10. ^ "Species Details".
  11. ^ Ferriss, S. E., Smith, K. G. and Inskipp, T. P.(editors), 2009 Irish Biodiversity: a taxonomic inventory of fauna. Online here: [1]
  12. ^ O'Connor, J.P., O'Connor, M.A., Ashe, P. & Wistow, S. 1999 A review of the Irish gall-mites (Acari: Eriophydae). Irish Naturalists' Journal 26: 241-248
  13. ^ Gledhill, T. & Viets K.O. (1976) A synonymic and bibliographic check-list of the freshwater mites (Hydrachnellae and Limnohalacaridae, Acari) recorded from Great Britain and Ireland. Freshwater Biological Association of Occasional Publishing, 1, 1–59.

Helsdingen, P.J. van, 1996 A county distribution of Irish spiders, incorporating a revised catalogue of the species Irish Naturalists' Journal Special Issue

Further information

Identification

Key works are:-

  • Jones, Dick, 1983 The Country Life Guide to spiders of Britain and Northern Europe Country Life Books/Hamlyn
  • Jones-WaltersL.M., Keys to Families of British Spiders AIDGAP Guide, Field Studies Council No. 197, 1989.
  • Locket, G.H. and Millidge, A.F. British Spiders . Vol I 1951, Vol II 1953 Ray Society of London.
  • Locket, G.H., Millidge, A.F. and Merrett P. British Spiders Vol III 1974 Ray Society of London.
  • Roberts, Michael J., The Spiders of Great Britain and Ireland Vols I, II, 1985, III 1987. Harley Books
  • Roberts, Michael J., 1993 The Spiders of Great Britain and Ireland Compact Edition Harley Books, 1993
  • Roberts, Michael J., 1995 Collins Field Guide: Spiders of Britain and Northern Europe Harper Collins

Peter C. Barnard, 1999 Identifying British insects and arachnids: an annotated bibliography of key works Cambridge University Press ISBN 0 521 63241 2 provides a comprehensive list of identification literature.

  • Wolfgang Nentwig, Theo Blick, Daniel Gloor, Ambros Hänggi & Christian Kropf Eds. Araneae of Europe Includes Descriptions, family keys, figures (pedipalps, epigyne, vulva, prosoma, eyes etc.), maps, references, image gallery. Search under species as generic placements differ
  • Spinnen-forum.de Comprehensive expert Wiki images, distribution (by species but under genus IE is Ireland, maps, references, descriptions in German
  • British Spiders
  • Biolib taxonomy, images