First record of Thaumasia Perty, 1833 nursery web spider (Araneae: Pisauridae) preying upon Polistes canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in the Neotropical region

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  First record of Thaumasia Perty, 1833 nursery web spider (Araneae: Pisauridae) preying upon Polistes canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in the Neotropical region Abstract Thaumasia Perty, 1833 are opportunistic spiders that inhabit the Neotropical region. This study reports a spider of the genus Thaumasia preying upon Polistes canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) in semiarid region of Brazil. A spider of the genus Thaumasia was observed moving rapidly from the fountain's water surface to capture an individual of P. canadensis . After successfully capturing the wasp, Thaumasia sp. was observed partially perched on the wall of the fountain, with the prey still on the water surface and trapped by its chelicerae. The pedipalps and chelicerae of Thaumasia sp. manipulated the head of P. canadensis , which stopped moving shortly after being captured, probably because of the action of the spider's venom. The study records a wasp in the diet of Thaumasia based on the ca...

Scorpions of the Horn of Africa (Arachnida: Scorpiones). Part XXXIX. Buthus pygmaeus sp. n. from Somaliland (Buthidae)

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Scorpions of the Horn of Africa (Arachnida: Scorpiones). Part XXXIX. Buthus pygmaeus sp. n. from Somaliland (Buthidae)

Abstract


New data are presented on the distribution of the genus Buthus Leach, 1815 in the Horn of Africa, mainly in Somaliland. B. pygmaeus sp. n. is described, fully complemented with color photographs of live and preserved specimens, as well as their habitats. In addition to the analysis of external morphology and hemispermatophors, we provide a description of the karyotype of B. pygmaeus sp. n. (2n=22). A key and distribution map of Buthus in the Horn of Africa (six species) are included.


Kovařík, F., Lowe, G., Šťáhlavský, F., & Elmi, H. S. 2025 . Scorpions of the Horn of Africa (Arachnida: Scorpiones). Part XXXIX. Buthus pygmaeus sp. n. from Somaliland (Buthidae). Euscorpius, No. 415: 1-14. https://mds.marshall.edu/euscorpius/vol2025/iss415/1/