Diversity of Yellow Sac Spiders (Cheiracanthiidae: Araneae: Arachnida) in India

Abstract

The present article deals with the distribution of one of the spider family Cheiracanthiidae (Araneae: Arachnida), commonly known as yellow sac spiders, in different Indian states and union territories and also provides an update checklist based on the literature published up to September 30, 2020. It includes total 38 species of yellow sac spiders described under only 2 genera in India. The records demonstrated that only four species of these spiders are widely distributed: Cheiracanthium danieli Tikader, 1975, Cheiracanthium indicum O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1874, Cheiracanthium melanostomum (Thorell, 1895) and Cheiracanthium triviale (Thorell, 1895). No yellow sac spider is reported from Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Haryana, Nagaland, Telangana and Ladakh yet. Species diversity is much more in Gujarat (14 species each) and Maharashtra (13 species) followed by Tamil Nadu (10 species), West Bengal (9 species), Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand (7 species in each), Kerala (6 species), and less number of species in other states. More than half (57.9%) species recorded in India are endemic. Despite their role as insect predators and being crucial to the health of terrestrial ecosystems, none of the species recorded in India is listed in IUCN Red List.