• Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

• Arthropods (Phylum Arthropoda)

• Chelicerates (Subphylum Chelicerata)

• Arachnids (Class Arachnida)

• Spiders (Order Araneae)

​

Order Araneae comprises the spiders, the largest order of arachnids, with more than 52,000. Spiders inhabit virtually every terrestrial ecosystem, including forests, grasslands, deserts, wetlands, caves, mountains, and even freshwater margins. They are characterized by a body divided into two main regions—the cephalothorax (prosoma) and abdomen (opisthosoma)—eight walking legs, simple eyes, venomous fangs (chelicerae), and specialized silk-producing organs called spinnerets. Silk is used for constructing webs, wrapping prey, creating egg sacs, building shelters, and dispersing through a process known as ballooning.