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N.B.: family name and authorship as per ICZN, 2009 Opinion 2224, after application by Kluge, 2007; Arkyinae L. Koch, 1872 (genera Arkys Walckenaer, 1837 and Demadiana Strand, 1929) elevated to Arkyidae by Dimitrov et al., 2017: 244; monophyly of Araneidae stated by Kallal et al., 2018: 138; Nephilinae Simon, 1894 [urn:lsid:nmbe.ch:spiderfam:0111] elevated to family and relimited by Kuntner, 2006: 24, re-synonymized with Araneidae by Dimitrov et al., 2017: 244; Nephilinae and Phonognathinae Simon, 1894 (Simon, 1894a: 746 as Phonognatheae), the valid name for Zygiellinae Simon, 1929 sensu Wunderlich, 2004f, elevated to family by Kuntner et al., 2019: 563, not accepted by Scharff et al., 2020 and Kallal et al., 2020, and confirmed as family by Kuntner et al., 2023: 969-970 along with the separation of Paraplectanoididae Kuntner, Coddington, Agnarsson & Bond, 2023; Nephilinae and Phonognathinae downgraded to subfamily and Paraplectanoididae considered a synonym of Araneidae by Hormiga et al., 2023: 803; family status of Paraplectanoididae, Nephilidae and Phonognathidae revalidated by Kuntner et al., 2025: 17, 23, but not accepted here for reasons of stability; Oarcinae (Gnolus and Oarces) transferred from the Mimetidae to the Araneidae by Dimitrov et al., 2012: Suppl. 1, p. 15, re-transfer to the Mimetidae by Eskov & Marusik, 2023: 340 not accepted here (by majority vote of the WSC boards); Eskov & Marusik, 2023: 241 and Eskov & Marusik, 2024: 52 consider Zygiellidae as the valid name instead of Phonognathidae and accept the family status of Nephilidae; the status of the Nephilinae and Phonognathinae (= Zygiellidae) as subfamilies is accepted by majority vote of the WSC boards; Eskov & Marusik, 2024: 52 list ten subfamilies and tribes as valid (besides Nephilidae and Zygiellidae): Araneinae, Argiopinae Simon, 1890a: 81 (sub Argiopidae), Cyrtarachninae Simon, 1895a: 876 (sub Cyrtarachneae), Сyrtophorinae Simon, 1895a: 876 (sub Cyrtophoreae), Gasteracanthinae O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1871e: 217 (sub Gasteracanthides), Micratheninae Simon, 1895a: 848 (sub Micratheneae), Guizygiellinae Zhu, Song & Zhang, 2003: 42, Caerostrini Simon, 1895a: 831 (sub Cerostreae), Hypognathini Simon, 1895a: 871 (sub Hypognatheae) and Poltyini Simon, 1895a: 888 (sub Poltyeae).
Transferred to other genera:
Aculepeira callaria Levi, 1991 -- see Amazonepeira
Aculepeira tedgenica (Bakhvalov, 1978) -- see Neoscona
In synonymy:
Aculepeira aculeata (Emerton, 1877, removed from S of A. carbonarioides) = Aculepeira packardi (Thorell, 1875) (Levi, 1977b: 228)
Aculepeira aralis (Bakhvalov, 1981, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira armida (Audouin, 1826) (Mikhailov & Marusik, 2023: 225)
Aculepeira armida canescens (Simon, 1908) = Aculepeira armida (Audouin, 1826) (Levy, 1998a: 329)
Aculepeira armida pumila (Simon, 1929) = Aculepeira armida (Audouin, 1826) (Sherwood, Blick & Ballarin, 2025: 49)
Aculepeira charitonovi (Ermolajew, 1928) = Aculepeira carbonarioides (Keyserling, 1892) (Marusik, Tarabaev & Litovchenko, 1991: 15)
Aculepeira cutucensis (Kraus, 1955, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira travassosi (Soares & Camargo, 1948) (Levi, 1991a: 298)
Aculepeira helvola (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1889, T from Metazygia) = Aculepeira aculifera (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1889) (Levi, 1993a: 236)
Aculepeira hyperborea (Kulczyński, 1908) = Aculepeira carbonarioides (Keyserling, 1892) (Marusik, Tarabaev & Litovchenko, 1991: 15)
Aculepeira karabagi (Karol, 1965, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira talishia (Zawadsky, 1902) (Levi, 1977b: 236, sub A. noseki)
Aculepeira kariae (Roewer, 1942, attributed to Strand, 1920, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira talishia (Zawadsky, 1902) (Levi, 1977b: 236, sub A. noseki)
Aculepeira lencoranicus (Bakhvalov, 1983, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira talishia (Zawadsky, 1902) (Marusik, 1985b: 137)
Aculepeira melloi (Brignoli, 1983, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira albovittata (Mello-Leitão, 1941) (Levi, 1991a: 303)
Aculepeira noseki (Strand, 1907) = Aculepeira talishia (Zawadsky, 1902) (Marusik, 1985b: 137)
Aculepeira sargi (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1889, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira aculifera (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1889) (Levi, 1991a: 304)
Aculepeira septentrionalis (Kulczyński, 1908, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira packardi (Thorell, 1875) (Levi, 1977b: 228)
Aculepeira sericina (Roewer, 1942, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira armida (Audouin, 1826) (Breitling et al., 2016b: 52)
Aculepeira vachoni (Karol, 1964, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira ceropegia (Walckenaer, 1802) (Levi, 1977b: 234)
Aculepeira vegae (Holm, 1970, T from Araneus) = Aculepeira carbonarioides (Keyserling, 1892) (Levi, 1977b: 230)
Aculepeira verae Chamberlin & Ivie, 1942 = Aculepeira packardi (Thorell, 1875) (Levi, 1977b: 228)
Aculepeira victoria (Thorell, 1870) = Aculepeira armida (Audouin, 1826) (Drensky, 1943: 244, sub Araneus)
Nomen dubium:
Aculepeira carbonaria fulva Franganillo, 1913: 128 (f, Spain, originally in Epeira) -- Breitling et al., 2016b: 51
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