Broad-Scale Climatic Gradients Drive Multiple Facets of Scorpion Beta Diversity in Northeastern Brazil

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  Broad-Scale Climatic Gradients Drive Multiple Facets of Scorpion Beta Diversity in Northeastern Brazil ABSTRACT Aim Beta diversity analyses clarify mechanisms structuring ecological communities, but their multidimensional facets remain poorly explored in arthropods. Here, we quantified taxonomic, phylogenetic, and functional beta diversity in scorpions, partitioned these facets into species replacement and richness differences, and evaluated the relative importance of spatial structure and environmental conditions in driving community assembly. Location Northeastern Brazil, South America. Taxon Scorpions (Arachnida: Scorpiones). Methods Taxonomic beta diversity was estimated using species presence across 70 sites in northeastern Brazil. Phylogenetic turnover was calculated from a multi-locus molecular tree, and functional beta diversity was derived from morphometric and ecological traits. All beta diversity facets were decomposed into replacement and richness-difference component...

Zodarion spiders (Araneae: Zodariidae): morphology, molecular characterisation and reassessment of the elegans, italicum, and pusio groups from Iberia and the Canary Islands

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Zodarion spiders (Araneae: Zodariidae): morphology, molecular characterisation and reassessment of the elegans, italicum, and pusio groups from Iberia and the Canary Islands

ABSTRACT

The ant-eating spider genus Zodarion has emerged as a valuable model system for the study of various aspects of spider biology; however, its taxonomy remains a complex challenge. This difficulty primarily stems from the insufficient documentation of numerous Zodarion species. In the present study, we provide the first comprehensive morphological characterisation of Iberian and Canarian Zodarion species belonging to the elegans, italicum, and pusio groups, employing both photographic and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images to emphasise key taxonomic traits. Additionally, we offer the first molecular characterisation of these species groups based on COI barcodes, aiming to facilitate their identification and explore patterns of mitochondrial variation within and between Iberian and Canarian species. A new species, Zodarion sanchezi Shafaie and Pekár sp. n., from the elegans group, is described here. Molecular analyses indicate that species within all five groups generally form monophyletic groups, with the exception of Z. styliferum, Z. modestum and Z. murphyorum, supporting the efficacy of molecular barcoding for species identification in Zodarion.

Shafaie, S., Pekár, S., & Ortiz, D. (2025). Zodarion spiders (Araneae: Zodariidae): morphology, molecular characterisation and reassessment of the elegans, italicum, and pusio groups from Iberia and the Canary Islands. Journal of Natural History, 59(25–28), 1825–1875. https://doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2025.2498047