Neobisiidae

Neobisiidae
Stenohya pengae
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Class: Arachnida
Order: Pseudoscorpionida
Superfamily: Neobisioidea
Family: Neobisiidae
Chamberlin, 1930
Genera

Acanthocreagris
Alabamocreagris
Americocreagris
Australinocreagris
Balkanoroncus
Bisetocreagris
Cryptocreagris
Dentocreagris
Ernstmayria
Fissilicreagris
Globocreagris
Halobisium
Insulocreagris
Lissocreagris
Microbisium
Microcreagris
Minicreagris
Neobisium
Novobisium
Occitanobisium
Orientocreagris
Paedobisium
Parobisium
Protoneobisium
Roncobisium
Roncocreagris
Roncus
Saetigerocreagris
Stenohya
Tartarocreagris
Trisetobisium
Tuberocreagris

Neobisiidae is a family of pseudoscorpions distributed throughout Africa, the Americas and Eurasia and consist of 550 species in 32 genera. Some species live in caves while some are surface-dwelling.

Characteristics

The body color ranges from reddish or dark brown through olive green to yellow or creamy white. The legs are greenish. They usually have four eyes, but cave-dwelling species often have two or no eyes at all. The body length ranges from 1 to 5 mm.

Specimens of Neobisiidae have two very long pedipalps with palpal chelae (pincers) which strongly resemble the pincers found on true scorpions. The pedipalps consists of an immobile "hand" and "finger", with a separate movable finger controlled by an adductor muscle. Contrary to most other pseudoscorpions a venom gland and duct are located in the immobile "finger" part of each pedipalp, rather than in the movable one. The venom is used to capture and immobilize the prey.

References

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