Big Spider, Big Genome: Chromosome-level genome of a North American tarantula (Aphonopelma marxi) and comparative genomics across 300 million years of spider evolution

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  Image Credit: WikiCommons Big Spider, Big Genome: Chromosome-level genome of a North American tarantula (Aphonopelma marxi) and comparative genomics across 300 million years of spider evolution Abstract The comparison of chromosome-level genomes allows biologists to investigate new axes of organismal evolution. Spiders comprise a significant proportion of known arachnid diversity, with many complex morphologies and unique natural histories, yet comparative genomics in spiders has been limited due to the number of available genomes. We present a de novo chromosomal reference genome of a mature male tarantula, Aphonopelma marxi, and comparatively examine spider genome evolution across the Order Araneae. Using PacBio HiFi and Hi-C sequencing, the final 6.5 Gb assembly consists of 17 autosomes, 1 X chromosome, and 127 unplaced scaffolds, with an N50 of 370 Mb and Arachnida (odb10; 2934 genes) BUSCO of 96.7%. By comparing 20 additional spider genomes from 15 families, we find mygalomo...

Invertebrates of AlUla: Scorpions, Spiders, Dragonflies and Butterflies (Field Guide)

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Dear Arachnologist Friends,

It’s my pleasure to share that a field guide I co-authored—“Invertebrates of AlUla: Scorpions, Spiders, Dragonflies and Butterflies” (part of the Fauna of AlUla Field Guide Series)—has been made freely available in PDF format by the Royal Commission for AlUla (RCU).

The guide is available in both English and Arabic, with the aim of reaching a broad audience.
You’ll also find many other publications and field guides from different disciplines available at the same link.

While some taxonomic updates are already underway—particularly for the scorpions—this guide currently represents the most comprehensive and up-to-date resource for this historically important, yet previously understudied, region of the Arabian Peninsula.

The beautiful illustrations throughout the series were created by the talented Davina Falcão, who brought all the featured animals to life with her art. If interested, I leave here her website to appreciate her art! https://davinafalcaoart.com.

We warmly welcome any feedback or suggestions—and if you're interested in collaborating, there's still a lot of potential to build on this work. For that you can reach me at the email address yurisimone1@gmail.com.

A huge collective hug and see you in Croatia!

A close-up of a signature AI-generated content may be incorrect.

Yuri Simone

https://www.rcu.gov.sa/en/open-data-library