Mysmenidae
Mysmenidae is the Dwarf Cobweb Spider family and superficially they resemble the cobweb spiders in Theridiidae. As the common name suggests, members of this family are pretty small (<2.0mm) which makes them unlikely that most people will notice them. Due to their size, this family is poorly understood and it was unknown within Minnesota's spider fauna until the summer of 2024 when a female Microdipoena guttata was collected in Wadena County. Prior to that, this species' closest known occurrence was in northeastern Illinois which means it was a pleasant surprise to find it in the state.
This species is typically found in the leaf litter of dry woods where they spin webs similar to some of the dwarf spiders (Levi, 1956a). The Minnesota specimen was swept from a lawn in city park with scattered trees (see link below). I typically assume that a spider of this size is an immature but for some reason, I decided to collect that one. I will definitely be looking more carefully at the smaller spiders that show up in my collections.
https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/227327766
Sources
• Levi, H. W. 1956a. The spider genus Mysmena in the Americas (Araneae, Theridiidae). American Museum Novitates 1801: 1-13.
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