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arachnid
📅 Updated:2025-06-14
🕒 Created:2016-01-02
🆔 ID:9590
Description
Arachnids, members of Arachnida, are a large class of arthropods, with most adults possessing multiple legs, multiple eyes, facial appendages such as chelicerae and pedipalps, and generally large and/or elongated abdomens. The most well known arachnids are spiders and scorpions. If the arachnid isn't contributing to the scene, consider using ambient_arachnid instead.
Nearly all adult arachnids have 8 legs, differentiating them from general insects who typically have 6. Also, unlike insects, they lack antennae as well as wings. Their bodies are covered in a tough exoskeleton, some being covered in fur or hairs known as urticating hairs, used as a form of defensive irritant. Almost all arachnids are terrestrial, though a few live within freshwater and marine environments. Quite a few arachnids utilize various, similar defensive and hunting mechanisms, often related to piercing the skin of the predator or their prey with claws, pincers, stingers, or fangs. A lot of arachnids utilize this piercing alongside a form of venom. All arachnids produce silk, and about half of the arachnid species use the silk to weave webs to catch prey.
Families, genera, and species
- arthropod
- arachnid
Related
General anatomy
- arthropod_abdomen
- arthropod_webbing
- chelicerae
- claws
- exoskeleton
- fangs
- multi_eye
- multi_limb
- pedipalps
- pincers
- stinger
Other rankings
- tag group:species
- arthropod
- anomalocarid - Anomalocaris, etc.
- arachnid - Scorpion, spider, tick, etc.
- crustacean - Crab, lobster, shrimp, etc.
- insect
- myriapod - Centipede and millipede.
