Arachnids of North Carolina
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Scientific Name: Common Name: Family (Alpha):
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View Sclerosomatidae Members: NC Records

Leiobunum uxorium (Crosby & Bishop, 1924) - No Common Name


Taxonomy
Order: OPILIONESSuborder: EupnoiSuperfamily: PhalangioideaFamily: Sclerosomatidae                                                                                 
Comments: Approximately 30 species in this genus have been identified as occurring in North America north of Mexico (Cokendolpher and Lee, 1993; Ingianni et al., 2011), with 16 recorded in North Carolina. However, the validity of several of these species is suspect, with several that will probably be determined to be synonyms of other species, e.g., davisi, speciosum, and zimmermani in North Carolina Burns et al., 2012; Shultz, 2018). According to Shultz (2018), moreover, recent phylogenetic studies indicate both that more species are waiting to be described and that the name Leiobunum may eventually be restricted to European species, requiring new generic names for most, if not all, of our species.
Species Comment: Placed in the Leiobunum vittatum Species Group by Burns et al. 2012) based on both reproductive structures and genetic analysis. In North Carolina, this group also includes L. vittatum.
Identification
Online Description/Photos: BugGuide Google, iNaturalist, Wikipedia, GBIFTechnical Description: Davis (1934); Shultz (2018)
Comments: The dorsal surface of the males is golden yellow; the central figure is obsolete or faint. The ventral surface and coxae are cinnamon brown. The palpi are yellow but the legs are dark brown or black; the dark trochanters contrast strongly with the paler coxae (Davis, 1934). In females, the dorsum is light brown and the venter is noticeably lighter (Davis, 1934). The central figure is dark brown with light spots; the area lateral to the central figure is golden brown, also with light spots (Shultz, 2018).
Total Length: 4 mm, males; 6.5 mm, females (Davis, 1934)Adult ID: identifiable by photo of specific features and/or supplementary info
Structural Features: In males, the abdomen is trucated posteriorly; in females, it is rounded.
Structural photos

Venral view showing penis. Specimen collected 2019-09-25 by S. Hall in Orange County
Distribution in North Carolina
Comments: We have records from the High Mountains to the Coastal Plain
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Adult phenology:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: Crosby and Bishop (1924) reported seeing a large number of mating pairs on a sunny bank on the edge of a pine woods.
Observation Methods: This is a late season species, persisting into early winter (Shultz, 2018)
Abundance/Frequency: We currently have too few records from North Carolina to judge its frequency of occurrence or abundance
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: [GNR] [S3S5]
State Protection: Arachnids are not protected under state law, although permits are needed to collect them in State Parks and other public and private nature preserves
Comments: We have only one recent record for this species in the state but it appears to occupy a wide range within the state and does not appear to be habitat-limited. It will therefore probably be determined to be secure within the state.

 Photo Gallery for Leiobunum uxorium - No common name

Photos: 12

Recorded by: Steve Hall, Carol Tingley, Tom Howard, David George, Pat Coin, Jeff Niznik, on 2024-07-27
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Nathan Vaughan on 2023-11-22
Person Co.
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Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2020-11-08
Orange Co.
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Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2020-10-22
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Owen McConnell on 2020-10-04
Durham Co.
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Recorded by: Owen McConnell on 2020-10-04
Durham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2019-10-22
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2019-10-04
Orange Co.
Comment: Female
Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2019-10-04
Orange Co.
Comment: Female; seen at moth sheet
Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2019-09-25
Orange Co.
Comment: Male, collected at moth sheet. 4.2 mm TL
Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2019-09-24
Orange Co.
Comment: Male
Recorded by: Steve Hall on 2019-09-22
Orange Co.
Comment: Male, at moth sheet