Passive transponder implantation in Theraphosidae: A tool for traceability and conservation

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  Passive transponder implantation in Theraphosidae: A tool for traceability and conservation Abstract Illegal wildlife trade represents a major global threat to biodiversity, with tarantulas among the most heavily trafficked invertebrate groups due to increasing demand in the international pet market, highlighting the urgent need for effective regulatory frameworks and reliable specimen-level traceability systems to distinguish legally bred individuals from illegally sourced ones. Individual identification is essential to support legal trade, strengthen enforcement mechanisms and reduce illegal trafficking; therefore, this study evaluated the feasibility and safety of passive integrated transponder microchip (PIT TAG) implantation for individual identification in multiple tarantula species under controlled laboratory conditions. Post-implantation parameters assessed included anaesthesia recovery time, feeding behaviour, ecdysis frequency, PIT TAG retention across successive moults...

Cymbiapophysa seldeni, a new theraphosine species from Ecuador (Araneae: Theraphosidae)

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Cymbiapophysa seldeni, a new theraphosine species from Ecuador (Araneae: Theraphosidae)


Abstract

Cymbiapophysa Gabriel & Sherwood, 2020 is a theraphosine genus endemic to South America, diagnosable on genital organ morphology in both sexes, and the presence of a distal-retrolateral apophysis on the male cymbium. Examination of historical material in the Natural History Museum, London, recently revealed a new species from Carondelet, Ecuador, with distinct palpal bulb and tibial apophysis morphology, described herein as Cymbiapophysa seldeni sp. nov.


Danniella Sherwood and Ray Gabriel "Cymbiapophysa seldeni, a new theraphosine species from Ecuador (Araneae: Theraphosidae)," Arachnology 19(5), 777-779, (10 July 2023). https://doi.org/10.13156/arac.2023.19.5.777