Distributional Notes on Three Wolf Spider Species (Araneae: Lycosidae) Recorded for the First Time in Diyala Province, Iraq

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  Distributional Notes on Three Wolf Spider Species (Araneae: Lycosidae) Recorded for the First Time in Diyala Province, Iraq Abstract This study presents new distributional data for three wolf spider species (Araneae: Lycosidae) from Diyala Province in eastern Iraq. Specimens were gathered from different districts and habitats between July 2025 and June 2026. The species Arctosa tbilisiensis Mcheidze, 1946, Lycosa piochardi Simon, 1876, and Wadicosa fidelis (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872) are recorded for the first time in Diyala, extending their known ranges within Iraq. The paper describes key diagnostic morphological features and includes information about the examined specimens and their local distributions. These findings improve knowledge of the distribution of Iraqi Lycosidae and reveal that Diyala Province, despite its habitat variety, remains insufficiently studied. The records serve as a valuable baseline for future taxonomic, faunistic, and ecological research on spiders i...

Glacial Relicts? a New Scorpion from Mount Olympus, Greece (Euscorpiidae: Euscorpius)

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Glacial Relicts? a New Scorpion from Mount Olympus, Greece (Euscorpiidae: Euscorpius)

Abstract

Mediterranean mountains and Pleistocene glacial cycles are responsible for much of the unique biodiversity of the Western Palearctic, acting respectively as refugia and drivers of diversification. Mount Olympus, a legendary Greek landmark, is a perfect example. This massif provided a glacial refugium for many species, resulting in a unique biota. In the present contribution, a new euscorpiid scorpion with a distinctive morphology, Euscorpius olympus, sp. nov., is described from an isolated population in the foothills of Mount Olympus. This new species raises the number of species in the genus Euscorpius Thorell, 1876, to 74, in Greece to 32, and in the vicinity of Mount Olympus, to three. The roles of climatic oscillations, altitudinal gradients and habitat heterogeneity on the diversity and distributions of the three species occurring around Mount Olympus are briefly discussed.


Javier Blasco-Aróstegui and Lorenzo Prendini "Glacial Relicts? a New Scorpion from Mount Olympus, Greece (Euscorpiidae: Euscorpius)," American Museum Novitates 2023(4003), 1-36, (9 November 2023). https://doi.org/10.1206/4003.1