Linyphiidae  Blackwall, 1859 / Microctenonyx  Dahl, 1886   2 species

Microctenonyx subitaneus (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1875)

Description

Tibial apophysis dorsal, pointed. Embolus hook-shaped. Prosoma yellow-brown, male: with broad depressions. Legs light yellow-brown. Opisthosoma yellowish grey.

Body length male: 1.2-1.5 mm
Body length female: 1.3-2 mm
Additional information

In litter layer, caves and buildings

Character states from linyphiid key
Distribution
  Presence
  No data
Global distribution (WSC 2026): Europe, Macaronesia, North Africa to Kyrgyzstan. Introduced to USA, Chile, Argentina, Kenya, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand
Phenology
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
 male  female
Figures
Distribution List
Algeria   (Bosmans, 2007; Benhacene et al., 2023) ||| Austria   (Thaler, 1999b) ||| Belgium   (Bosmans & Van Keer, 2017) ||| Bulgaria   (Blagoev et al., 2018) ||| Cyprus   (Bosmans et al., 2019c; Tanasevitch, 2011a) ||| Czechia   (Růžička & Řezáč, 2022a) ||| Denmark   (Scharff & Gudik-Sørensen, 2006) ||| Egypt   (El-Hennawy, 2017a) ||| France   (Le Peru, 2007) ||| France / Corsica   (Le Peru, 2007) ||| Germany   (Blick et al., 2016) ||| Greece   (Bosmans et al., 2009) ||| Greece / Crete   (Bosmans et al., 2013) ||| Iceland   (Agnarsson, 1996) ||| Ireland   (Cawley, 2001; Lavery, 2019) ||| Italy   (Isaia et al., 2025) ||| Italy / Sardinia   (Isaia et al., 2025) ||| Liechtenstein   (Arnold, 2001) ||| Malta   (Pfliegler et al., 2017; Dandria et al., 2005) ||| Morocco   (Bosmans, 2007) ||| Netherlands   (van Helsdingen, 2025a) ||| North Macedonia   (Komnenov, 2017) ||| Northern Ireland   (Lavery, 2019) ||| Norway   (Aakra & Hauge, 2003) ||| Poland   (Rozwałka & Stanska, 2008) ||| Portugal   (Branco et al., 2019) ||| Romania   (Weiss & Petrișor, 1999) ||| Serbia   (Deltshev et al., 2003b) ||| Slovakia   (Gajdoš et al., 1999) ||| Spain   (Branco et al., 2019) ||| Spain / Balearic Islands   (Branco et al., 2019) ||| Sweden   (Kronestedt, 2001) ||| Switzerland   (Maurer & Hänggi, 1990) ||| Tunisia   (Bosmans, 2007) ||| Ukraine   (Polchaninova & Prokopenko, 2019) ||| United Kingdom   (Lavery, 2019) |||
References

Aakra K, Hauge E (2003) Checklist of Norwegian spiders (Arachnida: Araneae), including Svalbard and Jan Mayen. Norwegian Journal of Entomology 50: 109-129 pdf

Agnarsson I (1996) Íslenskar köngulær Fjölrit Náttúrufræðistofnunar 31: 1-175 pdf

Arnold K (2001) Beitrag zur Spinnenfauna (Arachnida, Araneae) des Fürstentums Liechtenstein. Berichte der Botanisch-Zoologischen Gesellschaft Liechtenstein-Sargans-Werdenberg 28: 211-244 pdf

Benhacene R, Adjami A, Hadjeb A, Kermiche K, Ouakid M L (2023) Bibliographic checklist of the Algerian spider fauna (Araneae). Zootaxa 5352: 301-357 pdf

Blagoev G, Deltshev C, Lazarov S, Naumova M (2018) The spiders (Araneae) of Bulgaria. Version: August 2018. National Museum of Natural History, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. Online at http://www.nmnhs.com/spiders-bulgaria/ (accessed on 10.9.2018) pdf

Blick T, Finch O-D, Harms K H, Kiechle J, Kielhorn K-H , Kreuels M, Malten A, Martin D, Muster C, Nährig D, Platen R, Rödel I, Scheidler M, Staudt A, Stumpf H, Tolke D (2016) Rote Liste und Gesamtartenliste der Spinnen (Arachnida: Araneae) Deutschlands. 3. Fassung, Stand April 2008, einzelne Änderungen und Nachträge bis August 2015. Naturschutz und Biologische Vielfalt 70/4: 383-510 pdf

Bosmans R (2007) Contribution to the knowledge of the Linyphiidae of the Maghreb. Part XII. Miscellaneous erigonine genera and additional records (Araneae: Linyphiidae: Erigoninae). Bulletin & Annales de la Société Entomologique de Belgique 143: 117-163 pdf

Bosmans R, Baert L, Bosselaers J, De Koninck H, Maelfait J-P, Van Keer J (2009) Spiders of Lesbos (Greece). Nieuwsbrief van de Belgische Arachnologische Vereniging 24(suppl.): 1-70 pdf

Bosmans R, Van Keer J, Russell-Smith A, Hadjiconstantis M, Komnenov M, Bosselaers J, Huber S, McCowan D, Snazell R, Decae A, Zoumides C, Kielhorn K-H, Oger P (2019c) Spiders of Cyprus (Araneae). A catalogue of all currently known species from Cyprus. Newsletter of the Belgian Arachnological Society 34, Suppl. 1: 1-173 pdf

Bosmans R, Van Keer J, Russell-Smith A, Kronestedt T, Alderweireldt M, Bosselaers J, De Koninck H (2013) Spiders of Crete (Araneae). A catalogue of all currently known species from the Greek island of Crete. Nieuwsbrief van de Belgische Arachnologische Vereniging 28 (Suppl. 1): 1-147 pdf

Bosmans R, Van Keer K (2017) Een herziene soortenlijst van de Belgische spinnen (Araneae). Nieuwsbrief van de Belgische Arachnologische Vereniging 32: 39-69 pdf

Branco V V, Morano E, Cardoso P (2019) An update to the Iberian spider checklist (Araneae). Zootaxa 4614: 201-254 pdf

Cawley M (2001) Distribution records for uncommon spiders (Araneae) including five species new to Ireland. Bulletin of the Irish Biogeographical Society 25: 135-143 pdf

Dandria D, Falzon V, Henwood J (2005) The current knowledge of the spider fauna of the Maltese Islands with the addition of some new records (Arachnida: Araneae). The Central Mediterranean Naturalist 4: 121-129 pdf

Deltshev C D, Ćurčić B P M, Blagoev GA (2003b) The spiders of Serbia. Inst. Zoology, Fac. Biology, Belgrade & Inst. Zoology, Bulg. Acad. Sci., Sofia. 832 pp.

El-Hennawy H K (2017a) A list of Egyptian spiders (revised in 2017). Serket 15: 167-183 pdf

Gajdoš P, Svatoň J, Sloboda J (1999) Katalóg pavúkov Slovenska. Catalogue of Slovakian spiders. Ústav kr. ekol. SAV, Bratislava, 337 pp.

Gnelitsa V A (2009a) A survey of Crimean Linyphiidae (Aranei). 1. On seven rare and little known linyphiids from Crimea. Arthropoda Selecta 17: 191-202 pdf

Helsdingen P J van (2025a) Catalogus van de Nederlandse spinnen. Versie 2025.1. 249 pp. pdf

Isaia M, Tolve M, Pantini P (2025) Araneae.it: 2.0: the new updated version of the digital catalog of the Italian spiders and other arachnids (Arachnida: Araneae, Opiliones, Scorpiones, Pseudoscorpiones, Palpigradi, Solifugae). Fragmenta Entomologica 57: 197-204 pdf

Komnenov M (2017) New data on spider fauna (Araneae) of Shar Mountain, north-western Macedonia. Proceedings of the 5th Congress of the Ecologists of Macedonia, with international participation (Ohrid, 19th-22nd October 2016). Special issues of the Macedonian Ecological Society 13: 44-61 pdf

Kronestedt T (2001) Checklist of Spiders (Araneae) in Sweden [Preliminary version February 2001] pdf

Lavery A (2019) A revised checklist of the spiders of Great Britain and Ireland. Arachnology 18: 196-212 pdf

Le Peru B (2007) Catalogue et répartition des araignées de France. Revue Arachnologique 16: 1-468 pdf

Lecigne S, Moutaouakil S, Lips J (2023) Contribution to the knowledge of the spider fauna of Morocco (Arachnida: Araneae) – first note – on new records of cave spiders. Arachnologische Mitteilungen 66: 44-71 pdf

Locket G H, Millidge A F (1953) British spiders. Vol. II. Ray Society, London, 449 pp. pdf

Løvbrekke H (unpubl.)

Maurer R, Hänggi A (1990) Katalog der schweizerischen Spinnen. Documenta Faunistica Helvetiae 12 pdf

Pfliegler W A, Schönhofer A, Niedbała W, Vella P, Sciberras A, Vella A (2017) New records of mites (Acari) and harvestmen (Opiliones) from Malta with a preliminary checklist of Maltese Arachnida. Soil Organisms 89: 85-110 pdf

Polchaninova N, Prokopenko E (2019) An updated checklist of spiders (Arachnida: Araneae) of Left-Bank Ukraine. Arachnologische Mitteilungen 57: 60-64 & App pdf

Roberts M J (1987) The spiders of Great Britain and Ireland. Volume 2: Linyphiidae and checklist. Harley Books Colchester, England, 204 pp. pdf

Rozwałka R, Stanska M (2008) Check-list of spiders (Araneae) of Poland. 1. December 2008. online at http://www.arachnologia.edu.pl/en/species/8-spiders-of-poland.html pdf

Růžička V, Řezáč M (2022a) Seznam pavouků České republiky. List of spiders of the Czech Republic. Online at https://www.arachnology.cz/seznam-pavouku-cr-26.html and https://www.arachnology.cz/en/seznam-pavouku-cr-26.html pdf

Scharff N, Gudik-Sørensen O (2006) Katalog over Danmarks edderkopper (Araneae). Catalogue of the spiders of Denmark (Araneae). Entomologiske Meddelelser 74: 3-71 pdf

Tanasevitch A V (2011a) On linyphiid spiders from the eastern and central Mediterranean kept at the Muséum d'histoire naturelle, Geneva. Revue Suisse de Zoologie 118: 49-91 pdf

Thaler K (1999b) Beiträge zur Spinnenfauna von Nordtirol - 6. Linyphiidae 2: Erigoninae (sensu Wiehle) (Arachnida: Araneida). Veröffentlichungen des Tiroler Landesmuseums Ferdinandeum 79: 215-264 pdf

Weiss I, Petrișor A (1999) List of the spiders (Arachnida: Araneae) from Romania. Travaux du Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle “Grigore Antipa” 41: 79-107 pdf

Wiehle H (1960a) Spinnentiere oder Arachnoidea (Araneae). XI. Micryphantidae-Zwergspinnen. Die Tierwelt Deutschlands 47: 1-620 pdf

WSC (2026) World Spider Catalog. Version 27. Natural History Museum Bern, online at http://wsc.nmbe.ch (13.2.2026) doi: 10.24436/2 pdf

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