Sphodros niger

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Protostomia
Cladus: Ecdysozoa
Cladus: Panarthropoda
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Classis: Arachnida
Ordo: Araneae
Subordo: Opisthothelae
Infraordo: Mygalomorphae
Superfamilia: Atypoidea

Familia: Atypidae
Genus: Sphodros

Species: Sphodros niger
Name

Sphodros niger Hentz, 1842

References

The World Spider Catalog, V7.0

Sphodros niger, the black purse-web spider, is a mygalomorph spider from the Eastern United States.[1] It is listed as a special concern species in Connecticut.[2]
Description

Males have a body length of about 11 mm, 29 mm with extended legs. The body is black, except for chocolate-brown legs.[1] Although the species was first described in 1842, females were first described in 1980.[3] This results from the male's behavior of wandering about in search of mates, while females, which reside in tubes, are rarely found.
Name

The species name niger is Latin for "black".
References

Fitch, Henry S. (1963): Spiders of The University of Kansas Natural History Reservation and Rockefeller Experimental Tract.
"Connecticut's Endangered, Threatened and Special Concern Species 2015". State of Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Bureau of Natural Resources. Retrieved 10 January 2018.

Platnick, Norman I. (2009): The world spider catalog, version 9.5. American Museum of Natural History.

Further reading

Gertsch, W.J. & Platnick, N.I. (1980). A revision of the American spiders of the family Atypidae (Araneae, Mygalomorphae). American Museum Novitates 2704. Abstract - PDF (12Mb)