Mollemeta Explained

Mollemeta is a monotypic genus of long-jawed orb-weavers endemic to Chile. It contains the single species, Mollemeta edwardsi,^[1] first described as Landana edwardsi, based on a female found in 1904.^[2] The name is a reference to "Molle", the Mapudungun word for "tree", because it builds its vertical orb webs on tree trunks.^[3] It is in a clade with Allende, Chrysometa, Dolichognatha, Meta, and Metellina due to several autapomorphies, including the unique shapes of the cymbium, conductor, and embolus.

See also

• List of Tetragnathidae species
• Allende
• Chrysometa
• Dolichognatha
• Meta
• Metellina

Notes and References

1. Gen. Mollemeta Álvarez-Padilla, 2007. World Spider Catalog Version 20.0. 2019-11-30. 2019. Natural History Museum Bern. 10.24436/2. Gloor. Daniel. Nentwig. Wolfgang. Blick. Theo. Kropf. Christian.
2. Simon. E.. 1904. Etude sur les arachnides du Chili recueillis en 1900, 1901 et 1902, par MM. C. Porter, Dr Delfin, Barcey Wilson et Edwards. Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique. 48. 94. Eugène Simon.
3. Álvarez-Padilla. F.. 2007. Systematics of the spider genus Metabus O. P.-Cambridge, 1899 (Araneoidea: Tetragnathidae) with additions to the tetragnathid fauna of Chile and comments on the phylogeny of Tetragnathidae. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 320–322. 151. 2. 10.1111/j.1096-3642.2007.00304.x. free.