Epedanidae is a family of the harvestman infraorder Grassatores

Grassatores

Grassatores is the most diverse infraorder of the Laniatores. It includes over 3,500 species distributed mainly in the World Tropics...

 with about 200 described species. They are the sister group of the Gonyleptoidea

Gonyleptoidea

Gonyleptoidea is the most diverse superfamily of the Grassatores. It includes around 2,500 species distributed in the tropics. They are characterized by the simplified male genitalia, with the glans free subapical in the truncus....

.

The Epedanidae are endemic

Endemic (ecology)

Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...

 to Asia

Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

. The subfamily Dibuninae forms the predominant harvestman fauna of the Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

. The other three subfamilies are more predominant in Indonesia

Indonesia

Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

, Malaysia and Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

, and some are found in Burma and Nepal

Nepal

Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...

. Some species occur outside this region, in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

, China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

, Vietnam

Vietnam

Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...

 and Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. One species is even endemic to New Guinea

New Guinea

New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...

.

Description

The body size ranges from two to five millimeters, with thin legs ranging from six to 26 mm. The chelicerae are heavy with strong teeth in both fingers. The pedipalp

Pedipalp

Pedipalps , are the second pair of appendages of the prosoma in the subphylum Chelicerata. They are traditionally thought to be homologous with mandibles in Crustacea and insects, although more recent studies Pedipalps (commonly shortened to palps or palpi), are the second pair of appendages of the...

s are long and strong, with powerful spines lining the inside of the claw. Most species are light brown with few black mottling. Some species possess white patches on the scutum

Scutum

Scutum is a small constellation introduced in the seventeenth century. Its name is Latin for shield.-History:Scutum is the only constellation that owes its name to a non-classical historical figure...

. The pedipalps are much more heavily spined in males, together with a swollen cheliceral hand.

Genera

For a list of all currently described species see List of Epedanidae species.

Dibuninae Roewer, 1912

• Dibunus Loman, 1906

Epedaninae Sørensen, in L. Koch 1886

• Alloepedanus S. Suzuki, 1985
• Balabanus Suzuki, 1977
• Caletorellus Roewer, 1938
• Epedanellus Roewer, 1911
• Epedanidus Roewer, 1945
• Epedanulus Roewer, 1913
• Epedanus Thorell, 1876
• Euepedanus Roewer, 1915
• Funkikoa Roewer, 1927
• Heteroepedanus Roewer, 1912
• Aboriscus Roewer, 1940
• Lobonychium Roewer, 1938
• Metathyreotus Roewer, 1913
• Metepedanulus Roewer, 1913
• Metepedanus Roewer, 1912
• Mosfora Roewer, 1938
• Nanepedanus Roewer, 1938
• Neoepedanus Roewer, 1912
• Paratakaoia S. Suzuki, 1985
• Parepedanulus Roewer, 1913
• Plistobunus Pocock, 1903
• Pseudoepedanus Suzuki, 1969
• Pseudomarthana P. D. Hillyard, 1985
• Takaoia Roewer, 1911
• Thyreotus Thorell, 1889
• Toccolus Roewer, 1927
• Zepedanulus Roewer, 1927

Acrobuninae Roewer, 1912

• Acrobunus Thorell, 1891
• Anacrobunus Roewer, 1927
• Harpagonellus Roewer, 1927
• Heterobiantes Roewer, 1912
• Metacrobunus Roewer, 1915
• Paracrobunus Suzuki, 1977

Sarasinicinae Roewer, 1923

• Acanthepedanus Roewer, 1912
• Albertops Roewer, 1938
• Asopella Sørensen, 1932
• Delicola Roewer, 1938
• Gintingius Roewer, 1938
• Kilungius Roewer, 1915
• Koyanus Roewer, 1938
• Kuchingius Roewer, 1927
• Nobeoka Roewer, 1938
• Opelytus Roewer, 1927
• Padangcola Roewer, 1963
• Panticola Roewer, 1938
• Parepedanus Roewer, 1912
• Pasohnus Suzuki, 1976
• Pseudobiantes Hirst, 1911
• Punanus Roewer, 1938
• Sarasinica Strand, 1914
• Sembilanus Roewer, 1938
• Sinistus Roewer, 1938
• Siponnus Roewer, 1927
• Sungsotia Tsurusaki, 1995
• Tegestria Roewer, 1936
• Tonkinatus Roewer, 1938

incertae sedis

Incertae sedis

, is a term used to define a taxonomic group where its broader relationships are unknown or undefined. Uncertainty at specific taxonomic levels is attributed by , , and similar terms.-Examples:*The fossil plant Paradinandra suecica could not be assigned to any...

• Beloniscellus Roewer, 1912
• Beloniscops Roewer, 1949
• Belonisculus Roewer, 1923
• Beloniscus Thorell, 1891
• Buparellus Roewer, 1949
• Bupares Thorell, 1889
• Dhaulagirius Martens, 1977
• Dumaguetes Roewer, 1927
• Parabeloniscus Suzuki, 1967
• Parabupares S. Suzuki, 1982
• Sotekia S. Suzuki, 1982
• Tithaeus Thorell, 1890
• Tokunosia Suzuki, 1964