Spider venom peptides Ht1a and Gg1a are toxic to honeybee parasite Varroa destructor by topical application

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  Spider venom peptides Ht1a and Gg1a are toxic to honeybee parasite Varroa destructor by topical application Abstract Global food supply strongly depends on honeybee pollination services, which are threatened by insecticides and pests such as parasitic Varroa destructor mites. Chemical varroacides/acaricides are hampered by resistance development, necessitating the development of sustainable and environmentally friendly alternatives, with arthropod venom peptides being considered promising sources of acaricidal toxins. With only a few acaricidal venom peptides being reported, we performed a systematic topical screening of 50 arthropod venoms against V. destructor , with 78% of the venoms causing 100% mortality after 24 h. Deconvolution of the venoms from the Tasmanian cave spider Hickmania troglodytes and the Giant Japanese funnel-web spider Gigathele gigas led to identification of the varroacidal peptides Ht1a and Gg1a. Topical application of Ht1a and Gg1a reduced varroa mite ...

Revision of the genus Micaria Westring, 1851 from China (Araneae: Gnaphosidae)

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Revision of the genus Micaria Westring, 1851 from China (Araneae: Gnaphosidae)

Abstract

The genus Micaria Westring, 1851 from China is revised. Nine new species are described: M. ciri sp. nov. (♂♀), M. everest sp. nov. (♂♀), M. ganzi sp. nov. (♂), M. geralt sp. nov. (♂♀), M. xinglongi sp. nov. (♂♀), M. xizang sp. nov. (♂♀), M. ya sp. nov. (♂♀), M. yeti sp. nov. (♂♀) and M. yunshani sp. nov. (♂♀). Three specific names are newly synonymized: M. alxa Tang, Urita, Song & Zhao, 1997 syn. nov. and M. yushuensis Hu, 2001 syn. nov. with M. rossica Thorell, 1875, and M. logunovi Zhang, Song & Zhu, 2001 syn. nov. with M. fulgens (Walckenaer, 1802). Five species are newly recorded in China: M. longimana Suzuki, 2022, M. nivosa L. Koch, 1866, M. micans (Blackwall, 1858), M. pallipes (Lucas, 1846) and M. tripunctata L. Koch, 1866. The male of M. bonneti Schenkel, 1963 is described for the first time. 28 species are assigned to five species groups, and 26 species are illustrated.

Liu, B. & Zhang, F. (2025) Revision of the genus Micaria Westring, 1851 from China (Araneae: Gnaphosidae). Zootaxa, 5645 (1), 1–114. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5645.1.1