Arachnids

Authors

Keywords:

arachnids, conservation, diversity, threats.

Abstract

Arachnids are among the animal groups with the worst reputation among people in general. However, they play a crucial role in food chains of terrestrial ecosystems as top predators of arthropods. Descending from marine ancestors, arachnids diversified, giving rise to more than 100,000 currently described species to become one of the most diverse animal groups. Arachnids include twelve orders: spiders (known for their silk and venom), harvestmen, scorpions, pseudoscorpions, mites, ticks, solifuges, palpigrades, ricinuleids, amblypygids, uropygids and schizomids. Invertebrates (including arachnids), as opposed to vertebrates, usually receive little attention in conservation projects. However, their populations are known to be threatened around the world by a wide range of factors: habitat loss, climate change, introduction of exotic species and illegal pet trade, among others.

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