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Calendar
BugGuide Gathering
Smoky Mountains
University of Tennessee Biological Field Station
August 8-10, 2008
Details...
 
Photos from the last gathering (Minnesota 2007)

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Family Ctenizidae - Cork-lid trapdoor spiders

Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class Arachnida (Arachnids)
Order Araneae (Spiders)
Infraorder Mygalomorphae (Mygalomorphs)
Family Ctenizidae (Cork-lid trapdoor spiders)
Explanation of Names
"Trapdoor spiders" because they make their homes in tubelike burrows completely lined with silk. They cut a lid which is attached on one side, like a hinged trapdoor. The top of the lid is camouflaged with debris. When they feel the vibration of prey, they rush out to capture it, then return to the burrow. Females rarely leave their burrows, but males may be found wandering in search of prey.
Size
10 - 30 mm
Works Cited
1.Spiders and Their Kin: A Golden Guide from St. Martin's Press
By Herbert W. Levi, Lorna R. Levi, Nicholas Strekalovsky