Five new cave-dwelling species of the genus Pinelema Wang & Li, 2012 from northern Vietnam are described based on both sexes: Pinelema onganh, new species; P. cavernalis, new species; P. huifengi, new species; and P. nagaoi, new species, from Cao Bang Province, and P. aurata, new species, from Dien Bien Province. Three of these species exhibit marked morphological adaptations to subterranean life, including the absence of eyes, depigmentation, and leg elongation. For each species, detailed images of their diagnostic characters are provided. When possible, barcode sequences of the new species are obtained and compared with published Pinelema sequences in a pairwise analysis to assess the interspecific genetic variation of the genus. The significance of Pinelema species diversity in the Southeast Asian karst regions is also briefly discussed, along with conservation challenges linked to their strict habitat requirements.
Ballarin, Francesco & Nguyen, Duc Anh & Eguchi, Katsuyuki. (2025). Hidden in the dark: five new species of Pinelema (Araneae: Telemidae) from caves in northern Vietnam with remarks on the genus diversity and conservation. The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology. 73. 548-567. 10.26107/RBZ-2025-0036.
