Chromosome-level genome assembly of the Hong Kong Krabby Harvestman (Heterobiantes geniculatus) (Opiliones: Epedanidae)

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  Chromosome-level genome assembly of the Hong Kong Krabby Harvestman (Heterobiantes geniculatus) (Opiliones: Epedanidae) Abstract Harvestmen (order Opiliones) are a diverse order within Arachnida that are widely distributed across the globe, and are known for their ecological roles as detritivores and predators in terrestrial ecosystems. However, the scarcity of high-quality genomic resources, especially for Asian endemic lineages, has hindered research into their morphological adaptations and evolutionary history. Here, we generated a chromosome-level genome assembly for the Hong Kong Krabby Harvestman ( Heterobiantes geniculatus ), a species endemic to Asia belonging to the family Epedanidae (Opiliones: Laniatores), by integrating PacBio HiFi long reads, Illumina short reads, RNA-seq, and Hi-C chromatin conformation capture technologies. The final genome assembly spans 3.15 Gb, with a scaffold N50 of 101.15 Mb, and a contig N50 of 8.10 Mb. Notably, 82.91% of the assembly was anc...

Expanding the taxonomy of crab spiders (Araneae, Thomisidae) in Sumatra: a new genus, five new species, and regional records

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Expanding the taxonomy of crab spiders (Araneae, Thomisidae) in Sumatra: a new genus, five new species, and regional records

Abstract

The taxonomy of crab spiders (Thomisidae) has been the focus of many reviews, adding new genera such as Ibana and Crockeria while synonymising Ascurisoma with Cebrenninus, and describing many new species. A collection of crab spiders from Jambi Province (Sumatra, Indonesia) revealed further diversity, resulting in the description of a new genus, Rangkayo Dhiya’ulhaq & Benjamin, gen. nov., and five new species: Crockeria neofelis Dhiya’ulhaq & Benjamin, sp. nov. (♂♀), Ibana svarnadvipa Dhiya’ulhaq & Benjamin, sp. nov. (♂♀), Pharta roseomaculata Dhiya’ulhaq & Benjamin, sp. nov. (♀), Rangkayo hitam Dhiya’ulhaq & Benjamin, sp. nov. (♂♀), and Rangkayo perkaso Dhiya’ulhaq & Benjamin, sp. nov. (♂♀). Additionally, new records of Angaeus christae Benjamin, 2013 (♂), Angaeus verrucosus Benjamin, 2017 (♂), Crockeria kinabalu Benjamin, 2016 (♂), Epidius elongatus Benjamin, 2017 (♂), and Pharta bimaculata Thorell, 1891 (♂♀) are provided for Sumatra, as well as high-resolution images of Cebrenninus magnus Benjamin, 2016 (♂) and Cebrenninus rugosus Simon, 1887 (♀). The present study highlights the considerable biodiversity of tropical crab spiders and underscores the importance of continued taxonomic and ecological research in Southeast Asia in general, and the Indonesian archipelago in particular.

Dhiya'ulhaq NU, Benjamin SP, Buchori D, Hidayat P, Scheu S, Drescher J (2025) Expanding the taxonomy of crab spiders (Araneae, Thomisidae) in Sumatra: a new genus, five new species, and regional records. ZooKeys 1241: 205-246. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1241.148348