Mygalomorph spiders from Peru (Araneae, Pycnothelidae, Rhytidicolidae): description of two new species and first Peruvian record of the family Rhytidicolidae

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  Mygalomorph spiders from Peru (Araneae, Pycnothelidae, Rhytidicolidae): description of two new species and first Peruvian record of the family Rhytidicolidae Abstract Two previously unknown mygalomorph spider species belonging to two families are described from the south-central Andean region of Peru. Within the family Pycnothelidae,  Acanthogonatus goloboffi  sp. n. is described, diagnosed and illustrated based on a female from Ccochirhuay, Cusco. The female of this species differs from most known  Acanthogonatus  by the shape of the spermathecae, which possess two single receptacles lacking additional projections or chambers. It further differs from congeners sharing a single receptacle by having non-spiraled ducts with a well-defined constriction and outwardly directed spherical receptacles. This represents the second record of the genus  Acanthogonatus  in Peru. Within the family Rhytidicolidae,  Fufius agualaniensis  sp. n. is describe...

Predation by Pholcus spiders (Araneae: Pholcidae) on tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae)

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Pet theraphosid spiders as prey of Pholcus Walckenaer, 1805 in captivity in Poland.
1. Hapalopus formosus; 2. Monocentropus balfouri; 3. Caribena versicolor.

Predation by Pholcus spiders (Araneae: Pholcidae) on tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae)

Synanthropic species of spiders – those that live in associationwith or benefit from humans and their environments – mayhunt various types of arthropods inside houses (Uhlenhaut, 2001).Among other taxa, numerous species of synantrhopic spiders preyon other spiders. This feeding behaviour is particularly common in spiders of the genus Pholcus Walckenaer, 1805, which havebeen observed preying on a variety of araneomorph spider taxa (Uhlenhaut, 2001; Sherwood, 2019). In Poland, the genus Pholcus is represented by three species (Nentwig et al., 2024).

Szymański, Dawid & Szymański, Dominik. (2025). Predation by Pholcus spiders (Araneae: Pholcidae) on tarantulas(Araneae: Theraphosidae). Newsletter of the British Arachnological Society 163: Summer 20225