Cicileus derradji sp. nov., a new species from southern Algeria (Scorpiones: Buthidae)

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  Cicileus derradji sp. nov., a new species from southern Algeria (Scorpiones: Buthidae) Abstract A new scorpion species, Cicileus derradji sp. nov., is described from Tin Zaouatine District, In Guezzam Province, southern Algeria. The description is based on an adult male holotype, an adult female paratype and a juvenile specimen, and is supported by detailed morphological analyses, including colouration, morphometrics, carination patterns and trichobothrial arrangement. This discovery extends the known distribution of the genus Cicileus approximately 500 km southwestward within Algeria. With the addition of this species, the number of recognised species in the genus increases to six. The new species is compared with all previously known species of Cicileus , and detailed colour photographs, including images taken under ultraviolet illumination, are provided. Derradj, L., Aydın Yağmur, E., Benali, N., & Bikada, M. (2026). Cicileus derradji sp. nov., a new species from south...

To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma

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To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma

Abstract

We report a sequence of unusual male behaviors observed in Nephila pilipes (Fabricius, 1793) (Araneae: Nephilidae Simon, 1894), a sexually size dimorphic tropical spider species in Singapore. We documented a male suitor using his mouth parts (chelicerae) rather than his copulatory organs (pedipalps) to repeatedly probe female genitals. The behaviors may have served as a strategy to assess the female’s mating status, functioned as a courtship strategy, or, most plausibly, represented an attempt to remove a genital plug. The documented chrono-sequence culminated in the male’s attempted commensalism, followed by an aggressive attack by the female, resulting in near-fatal injury to the male. Notably, the attack did not escalate into cannibalism, suggesting that the extreme size difference in Nephila may render small males unappealing as prey.

Kuntner, M., Xu, X., & Li, D. (2025). To Mate or to Steal Food? A Male Spider’s Dilemma. Diversity, 17(4), 281. https://doi.org/10.3390/d17040281 DOI is still being registered. Please use direct hyperlink for page: https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/17/4/281