Dolomedes
Large semiaquatic spiders that hunt on water surfaces.
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These spiders hunt on the water surface, using their front legs to subdue prey and injecting venom through their chelicerae.[1]
Scientific classification
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumArthropoda
- SubphylumChelicerata
- ClassArachnida
- OrderAraneae
- InfraorderAraneomorphae
- FamilyDolomedidae
- GenusDolomedes
Named by Latreille, 1804
Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Dolomedes (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Quick Facts
- Diversity
- c. 101 species
Facts from the source article.
Biology and range
The Katharine Ordway Natural History Study Area notes that Dolomedes tenebrosus is an opportunistic feeder found in dry wooded areas near water.[2] That same source states that D. tenebrosus is more adapted to land life than other members of the genus, often straying far from water.[2] A wasp of the Pompilidae family stings the spider to paralyze it, then lays an egg in its abdomen.[3] Insects form the primary diet of Dolomedes, though larger individuals are capable of preying on small fish.[1]
When they submerge, a layer of air clings to their bodies, giving them a silvery appearance.[1] Birds and snakes are the chief predators of these spiders.[3] Young spiders are sometimes preyed upon by dragonflies.[3] After a wasp lays an egg inside a spider, the resulting larva consumes the spider from within.[4]
What the specialist sources record
The Katharine Ordway Natural History Study Area explains that only the Dolomedes genus of the Pisauridae family has the eye pattern used for identification.[2] That source also reports that D. tenebrosus juveniles hibernate under rocks and underbrush.[2] GBIF records 95,578 occurrence records for the genus Dolomedes as of 15 October 2026.[5] The World Spider Catalog accepts 101 species of Dolomedes.[6]
Asia hosts the greatest number of Dolomedes species, with especially high diversity found in South-east Asia.[7] Only four species are recorded in South America.[7]
References
- Wikipedia, "Dolomedes" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: LSJ: δολομήδης (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Katharine Ordway Natural History Study Area, "Dark Fishing Spider", Biotic Inventory Documenting Diversity at the Katharine Ordway Natural History Study Area. facts only, no text reused. macalester.edu
- Wikipedia, "Dolomedes" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Evans, "A Taxonomic Study of the Nearctic Spider Wasps Belonging to the Tribe Pompilini (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae). Part I", Transactions of the American Entomological Society, 1949, p. 133–270 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Dolomedes" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Guarisco, "The Fishing Spider genus Dolomedes (Araneae: Pisauridae) in Kansas", Transactions of the Kansas Academy of Science, 2010, p. 35–43 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence index, Dolomedes (taxon key 2150885). CC BY 4.0 (backbone); counts are facts. gbif.org
- Wikipedia, "Dolomedes" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Gen. Dolomedes Latreille, 1804", World Spider Catalog (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Dolomedes" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Gen. Dolomedes Latreille, 1804", World Spider Catalog; Smith, "Taxonomy", Dolomedes.org.uk, 2010–2013 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Dolomedes (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Dolomedes (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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