New Records of<i>Steatoda nobilis</i>(Thorell, 1875) (Araneae, Theridiidae), an Introduced Species on the Italian Mainland and in Sardinia

Kulczycki, Alessandro; Simeon, Enrico; Legittimo, Carlo Maria; Pompeo, Piergiorgio Di

doi:10.13156/arac.2012.15.1.269

Cited by 15 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…Steatoda nobilis seemed unable to establish viable populations in either Great Britain or Germany at the time of copious and untreated banana imports (= highest propagule pressure; Allendorf and Lundquist 2003). Although it is often suggested or indicated that the British S. nobilis populations are descendants of specimens imported with fruits from the Canary Islands (e.g., Roberts 1995;Kulczycki et al 2012), this hypothesis is not well supported by current data. Since the 1960s, different phytosanitary treatments and transport techniques have become standard procedure in international trade and dramatically reduced the amount of alien spiders transported to Europe via shipping, especially after 1971 (Hallmann 2007;Nentwig 2015).…”

Section: Probable Introduction Pathways Of S Nobilismentioning

confidence: 61%

“…In the Mediterranean, many of the S. nobilis observations were made in or around cities and villages (e.g. Kulczycki et al 2012;Lecigne 2012;Melic 1994;Emerit and Ledoux 2013). However, several other specimens were collected in more natural habi- tats, e.g., a degraded pine forests near an urban area (Melic 1994), a (protected) marsh (Crespo et al 2009), or dunes (Ledoux and Raphael 1998).…”

Section: Literature Survey Of the Habitat Preferences Of S Nobilismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…in California; Vetter et al 2015). They are also often confronted with the highest propagule pressure of alien organisms due to long-distance trade and tourism, for example at the Italian localities discussed by Kulczycki et al (2012).…”

Section: Literature Survey Of the Habitat Preferences Of S Nobilismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Probably native to the Canary Islands and Madeira and first described from the latter (Thorell 1875), S. nobilis dramatically expanded its range in the last 100 years. The main invasion pathways for several alien spider species are relatively well known (potted plants, fruits, containers, packing material, and feeder cricket boxes) (Nentwig 2015), and for S. nobilis, it was often suspected that current populations in Great Brit-ain and Ireland are descendants of specimens imported to Europe with bananas and other fruit from the Canary Islands (e.g., Roberts 1995;Kulczycki et al 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although alien populations of S. nobilis are known today from England, Ireland, several parts of the Mediterranean area, California, and Chile (Snazell and Jones 1993;Vetter et al 2015;Taucare-Ríos et al 2016;Dugon et al 2017), no established population has ever been reported from Germany or other Central European countries. In the Mediterranean area and, e.g., California, nearly all records of S. nobilis are located in low altitudes, often near the coast (Kulczycki et al 2012;Vetter et al 2015;Morano et al 2018), while the species is known to occur in natural habitats at altitudes up to 3200 m in their native range on Tenerife (Schmidt 1968).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Steatoda nobilis, a false widow on the rise: a synthesis of past and current distribution trends

Bauer¹,

Feldmeier²,

Krehenwinkel³

et al. 2019

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The Noble False Widow, Steatodanobilis (Thorell, 1875) (Araneae, Theridiidae), is, due to its relatively large size and potential medical importance, one of the most notable invasive spider species worldwide. Probably originating from the Canary Islands and Madeira, the species is well established in Western Europe and large parts of the Mediterranean area and has spread recently into California and South America, while Central European populations were not known until 2011. We report on long-time observations that reveal that at least two flourishing populations in Germany (Cologne) have been present for over five years, while in Ecuador one population has been observed between 2014 and 2018 and several other records were made in other parts of the country. Data obtained from the British Spider Recording Scheme demonstrate that the species moved significantly northwards since the report of the first populations in the very South of England, after several decades of relative stasis. The sudden northward expansion highly correlates with a massive rise in press coverage of the species. In the Americas, S.nobilis is currently known from four countries (USA, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia), and available DNA barcoding data obtained for specimens from this area suggest that multiple introductions occurred within each country. Using ecological niche modeling, we identified suitable climate regions for the species and discuss possible reasons for its current spread. We propose that seaside cities and villages with a temperate oceanic or Mediterranean climate are especially favourable potential habitats for S.nobilis and will face the highest colonization pressure in the future, while tropical upland regions with temperate climates are also vulnerable to invasion by S.nobilis.

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Section: Probable Introduction Pathways Of S Nobilismentioning

confidence: 61%

Section: Literature Survey Of the Habitat Preferences Of S Nobilismentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Literature Survey Of the Habitat Preferences Of S Nobilismentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Steatoda nobilis, a false widow on the rise: a synthesis of past and current distribution trends

Bauer¹,

Feldmeier²,

Krehenwinkel³

et al. 2019

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Predation on a pygmy shrew, Sorex minutus, by the noble false widow spider, Steatoda nobilis

et al. 2023

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The noble false widow spider Steatoda nobilis is a globally invasive species with implications for public health and possibly for native ecosystems. Here, we report on a case of predation on a protected species of vertebrate, a pygmy shrew Sorex minutus in Britain. The importance and novelty of this report are: (1) this is the third documented case of S. nobilis preying on a vertebrate in five years, suggesting that small vertebrates are likely to be a more frequent component of their diet than previously thought; (2) this is the first case of a Theridiidae spider preying on a shrew in Britain; and (3) this is the first case of predation on shrews by the genus Steatoda globally. Overall, S. nobilis fits the profile of a habitual vertebrate-eating spider.

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Introduction, establishment rate, pathways and impact of spiders alien to Europe

Nentwig

2015

Biol Invasions

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A comprehensive analysis of spiders reported as alien for Europe over the last 200 years has yielded information for 184 spider species, which had been introduced at least once. The most common spider families are Theridiidae (27 species), Pholcidae (15), Salticidae (14), Sparassidae (14), Ctenidae (14), and Theraphosidae (13) but overall establishment rate was only 28 %. No ctenids or theraphosids established, and only one sparassid species, but many theridiids and pholcids. Most introduced species originated from South (34 %), Central (10 %) or North (12 %), America, Asia (19 %) and Africa (15 %). Only few of the South and Central American species could establish, while species from North America (36 %) and Asia (63 %) had much higher establishment rates. Over the last 200 years, introduction and establishment rates have been strongly increasing. Three pathways are responsible for the majority of introductions: fruit shipments (67 % of all cases), potted plants (16 %) and containers or packaging material (12 %). In contrast to fruit shipments, spiders introduced on plants or with containers have high establishment rates (65 and 47 %). Environmental impact of alien spiders can be expected on both insects (through predation) and spiders (through predation and competition), potentially leading to change of species composition and guild structure. Socio-economic impact includes

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New Records ofSteatoda nobilis(Thorell, 1875) (Araneae, Theridiidae), an Introduced Species on the Italian Mainland and in Sardinia

Cited by 15 publications

References 2 publications

Steatoda nobilis, a false widow on the rise: a synthesis of past and current distribution trends

Steatoda nobilis, a false widow on the rise: a synthesis of past and current distribution trends

Predation on a pygmy shrew, Sorex minutus, by the noble false widow spider, Steatoda nobilis

Introduction, establishment rate, pathways and impact of spiders alien to Europe

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