Long-jawed orb weaver

Long-jawed orb-weavers
Temporal range:
Metellina mengei
Tetragnatha montana, female
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Infraorder: Araneomorphae
Family: Tetragnathidae
Menge, 1866
Diversity
45 genera, 990 species
blue: reported countries (WSC)
green: observation hotspots (iNaturalist)

Long-jawed orb weavers or long jawed spiders (Tetragnathidae) are a family of araneomorph spiders first described by Anton Menge in 1866.[1] They have elongated bodies, legs, and chelicerae, and build small orb webs with an open hub with few, wide-set radii and spirals with no signal line or retreat. Some species are often found in long vegetation near water.[2]

Systematics

Opadometa fastigata in Kerala

As of January 2026, this family includes 45 genera and 990 species:[3]

  • Allende Álvarez-Padilla, 2007 – Argentina, Chile
  • Antillognatha Bryant, 1945 – Hispaniola
  • Atelidea Simon, 1895 – India, Sri Lanka
  • Azilia Keyserling, 1881 – Central America to Peru
  • Chrysometa Simon, 1894 – North America, South America
  • Cyrtognatha Keyserling, 1881 – North America, South America
  • Dianleucauge Song & Zhu, 1994 – China
  • Diphya Nicolet, 1849 – Madagascar, South Africa, Eastern Asia, Russia, South America
  • Dolichognatha O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1869 – Africa, Asia, Cuba, North to South America, Ocenia
  • Doryonychus Simon, 1900 – Hawaii
  • Dyschiriognatha Simon, 1893 – Brazil, Malaysia, Oceania
  • Glenognatha Simon, 1887 – Africa, Asia, North America, South America, French Polynesia, Marquesas Islands. Introduced to Seychelles, St. Helena, Brazil, Ecuador, Galapagos
  • Harlanethis Álvarez-Padilla, Kallal & Hormiga, 2020 – Australia
  • Hispanognatha Bryant, 1945 – Hispaniola
  • Homalometa Simon, 1898 – Cuba, Costa Rica, Panama, Mexico, Brazil, Lesser Antilles
  • Iamarra Álvarez-Padilla, Kallal & Hormiga, 2020 – Australia
  • Leucauge White, 1841 – Africa, Asia, Oceania, Americas
  • Leucognatha Wunderlich, 1992 – Kenya, Tanzania, Azores
  • Mesida Kulczyński, 1911 – Asia, Oceania
  • Meta C. L. Koch, 1835 – North Africa, Tanzania, South Africa, Asia, Australia, Madeira, Russia, Cuba, North America
  • Metabus O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1899 – Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Mexico
  • Metellina Chamberlin & Ivie, 1941 –Africa, Europe, Asia. Introduced to Canada
  • Metleucauge Levi, 1980 – Asia, Russia, United States
  • Mitoscelis Thorell, 1890 – Indonesia
  • Mollemeta Álvarez-Padilla, 2007 – Chile
  • Nanningia Zhu, Kim & Song, 1997 – China
  • Nanometa Simon, 1908 – Australia, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand
  • Neoprolochus Reimoser, 1927 – Indonesia
  • Okileucauge Tanikawa, 2001 – China, Japan
  • Orsinome Thorell, 1890 – Asia, New Guinea
  • Pachygnatha Sundevall, 1823 – Africa, Asia, Europe, Cuba, North America
  • Parameta Simon, 1895 – Sierra Leone
  • Parazilia Lessert, 1938 – DR Congo
  • Pholcipes Schmidt & Krause, 1993 – Comoros
  • Pickardinella Archer, 1951 – Mexico
  • Pinkfloydia Hormiga & Dimitrov, 2011 – Australia
  • Schenkeliella Strand, 1934 – Sri Lanka
  • Taraire Álvarez-Padilla, Kallal & Hormiga, 2020 – New Zealand
  • Tawhai Álvarez-Padilla, Kallal & Hormiga, 2020 – New Zealand
  • Tetragnatha Latreille, 1804 – Worldwide
  • Timonoe Thorell, 1898 – Myanmar
  • Tylorida Simon, 1894 – West Africa, Asia to Australia
  • Wolongia Zhu, Kim & Song, 1997 – China, India
  • Zhinu Kallal & Hormiga, 2018 – Japan, Korea, Taiwan
  • Zygiometella Wunderlich, 1995 – Israel, Cyprus

Fossil genera

Several extinct, fossil genera have been described:[4]

  • †Anameta Wunderlich, 2004 (Palaeogene, Bitterfield and Baltic amber)
  • †Balticgnatha Wunderlich, 2004 (Palaeogene, Baltic amber)
  • †Corneometa Wunderlich, 2004 (Palaeogene, Baltic amber)
  • †Eometa Petrunkevitch, 1958 (Palaeogene, Baltic amber)
  • †Huergnina Selden & Penney, 2003 (Cretaceous, Las Hoyas, Spain)
  • †Macryphantes Selden, 1990 (Cretaceous)
  • †Palaeometa Petrunkevitch, 1922 (Palaeogene, Florissant)
  • †Palaeopachygnatha Petrunkevitch, 1922 (Palaeogene, Florissant)
  • †Priscometa Petrunkevitch, 1958 (Palaeogene, Baltic amber)
  • †Samlandicmeta Wunderlich, 2012 (Palaeogene, Baltic amber)

Formerly placed here

  • Deliochus Simon, 1894 – now in Araneidae
  • Eryciniolia Strand, 1912 – now a synonym of Nanometa
  • Menosira Chikuni, 1955 – now a synonym of Metellina
  • Nediphya Marusik & Omelko, 2017 – now a synonym of Nanometa
  • Phonognatha Simon, 1894 – now in Araneidae
  • Prolochus Thorell, 1895 – see Dolichognatha

See also

A few common spiders in this family include:

References

  1. ^ Menge, Anton (1866). "Preussische Spinnen. Erste Abtheilung". Schriften der Naturforschenden Gesellschaft in Danzig (N.F.). 1.
  2. ^ Gould, John; García, Luis Fernando; Valdez, Jose. W. (March 2023). "Water webbing: Long‐jawed spider (Araneae, Tetragnathidae) produces webs that touch the surface of ephemeral waterbodies". Ethology. 129 (3): 182–185. doi:10.1111/eth.13355.
  3. ^ "Family Tetragnathidae Menge, 1866". World Spider Catalog. doi:10.24436/2. Retrieved 2026-01-22.
  4. ^ Dunlop, J. A., Penney, D. & Jekel, D. 2018. A summary list of fossil spiders and their relatives. In World Spider Catalog. Natural History Museum Bern, online at http://wsc.nmbe.ch, version 19.0, accessed on 7 October 2018.
  • Chickering, A.M. (1963). The Male of Mecynometa globosa (O. P.-Cambridge) (Araneae, Argiopidae). Psyche 70:180–183. PDF
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