Venomics of the six-eyed sand spider, Sicarius rugosus (Araneae: Sicariidae), from the neotropical dry forest of Costa Rica

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  Venomics of the six-eyed sand spider, Sicarius rugosus (Araneae: Sicariidae), from the neotropical dry forest of Costa Rica Abstract Background Sicarius rugosus , the only member of the genus that inhabits Central America, is phylogenetically related to South American  Sicarius  spiders. These originated from a common ancestor with sister African species. Like  Loxosceles ,  Sicarius  exhibits venom phospholipase D activity due to a group of toxins known collectively as SicTox. Methods A gel-assisted, bottom-up, proteomic analysis was performed to characterize the venom composition of  S. rugosus . Hyaluronidase activity was determined using zymography. Results We identified several SicTox sequences, all classified as β-clade paralogs and sharing unique peptides with proteins from  S. patagonicus ,  S. peruensis,  and other species. Enzymes such as metalloproteinases, including putative astacins, carboxypeptidases, and angiotensin-conv...

A new species of Androctonus Ehrenberg, 1828 from the Tassili n'Ajjer, Algeria (Scorpiones: Buthidae)

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A new species of Androctonus Ehrenberg, 1828 from the Tassili n'Ajjer, Algeria (Scorpiones: Buthidae)

Abstract. – A new species of Androctonus Ehrenberg, 1828 is described on the basis of one male specimen collected in Eferi, at the foothills of the Tassili n'Ajjer massif, Wilaya of Djanet, Algeria. This new scorpion taxon represents the 42nd known species of the genus Androctonus and the 7th reported from Algeria. A geographical distribution map of the Androctonus species occurring in the region of the Saharan Mountain ranges of Algeria and Niger is presented.

Ythier E., Sadine S. E., Alioua Y. & Lourenço W. R., 2025. – A new species of Androctonus Ehrenberg, 1828 from the Tassili n'Ajjer, Algeria (Scorpiones: Buthidae). Faunitaxys, 13(08): 1 – 8. 

https://doi.org/10.57800/faunitaxys-13(08) - https://zoobank.org/5F076343-9D35-4918-87C6-3F44E948B588