Desis marina

Intertidal spider
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Family: Desidae
Genus: Desis
Species: D. marina
Binomial name
Desis marina
Hector, 1878

The intertidal spider, Desis marina is a spider species found in New Zealand, New Caledonia, and the Chatham Islands.

It was first described by James Hector in 1878.[1]

Description

Desis marina is 8–10 mm long, with a brown carapace and a light gray abdomen. Its chelicerae are proportionally large. They are notable for their complex branched tracheal systems and their adaptations to a marine environment.

Distribution and habitat

It is found in beach tidal zones, between low and high tide levels. They build silk retreats in seashells, tubeworm burrows, and bull kelp holdfasts. In these environments, the spiders and their silk retreats are sometimes submerged in sea water. Forster & Forster [2] note that this spider's respiratory rate is slower than in similar land spiders. This may be an adaptation for spending long periods under water. They emerge and feed during low tide, eating amphipods, marine isopods, and other small invertebrates.

References

  1. ↑ Hector, J. 1878. Note on a marine spider. Transactions of the New Zealand Institute, 10:300.
  2. ↑ Forster, R., Forster, L. 1999. Spiders of New Zealand and their World-wide Kin. University of Otago Press, New Zealand.


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