Trogulus tricarinatus

Trogulus tricarinatus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Order: Opiliones
Family: Sclerosomatidae
Genus: Trogulus
Species: T. tricarinatus
Binomial name
Trogulus tricarinatus
Linnaeus, 1758
Synonyms

Phalangium tricarinatum
Opilio carinatum

Trogulus tricarinatus is a species of harvestman. It is found in Europe and North America.

T. tricarinatus grows to between 7 and 9mm in both sexes.[1] The second pair of legs grow to 8mm.[1] The body is flattened and narrow.[1][2] The legs are short and robust, with the front two pairs having two segments and the back two three.[1] Immature specimens are violet in colour.[2] They pass through six moults over a period of up to nine months before reaching adulthood.[3]

This harvestman is widespread in Europe (excluding Scandinavia) and has been introduced into North America.[3] It is rare in Britain, usually found only in the south.[1] It is generally found in calcareous areas, and is often found in leaf litter.[1] It moves slowly and is usually covered in particles of dirt.[2]

The openings of the scent glands in this species are not visible and the glands appear to have a non-defensive role.[4]

T. tricarinatus feeds on snails and lays eggs in the empty shells.[3] It also feeds on insects and earthworms.[5]

It is similar to the smaller Anelasmocephalus cambridgei.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Jones, Dick (1989) A Guide to Spiders of Britain and Northern Europe (revised edition), Hamlyn, ISBN 0-600-56710-9, p. 302
  2. 1 2 3 Savory, Theodore (1945) The Spiders & Allied Orders of the British Isles, Warne, p. 155
  3. 1 2 3 Hillyard, Paul D. and Sankey, John H. P. (1989) Harvestmen: Keys and Notes for the Identification of the Species, Brill Academic Pub., ISBN 978-9004090781, pp. 48-9
  4. ↑ Schaider, Miriam & Raspotnig, Guenther (2008) "Unusual organization of scent glands in Trogulus tricarinatus (Opiliones, Trogulidae): evidence for a non-defensive role", Journal of Arachnology, 37(1):78-83. 2009
  5. ↑ Pinto-da-Rocha, Ricardo, Machado, Glauco & Giribet, Gonzalo (2007) Harvestmen: The Biology of Opiliones, Harvard University Press, ISBN 978-0674023437, p. 314
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