A comparison of adhesive performance among six cursorial spider species

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  A comparison of adhesive performance among six cursorial spider species Abstract The ability to adhere to surfaces is particularly relevant for cursorial predatory arthropods like hunting spiders, which often traverse relatively complex environments characterized by large variation in substrate properties. Here, we evaluated the adhesive performance of six hunting spider species that are common in eastern temperate North America and lack specialized tarsi for climbing smooth or inclined surfaces [Lycosidae: Pardosa lapidicina Emerton, 1885 and Rabidosa rabida (Walckenaer, 1837); Oxyopidae: Oxyopes salticus Hentz, 1845; Pisauridae: Pisaurina mira (Walckenaer, 1837); Dolomedidae: Dolomedes triton (Walckenaer, 1837), and Dolomedes scriptus Hentz, 1845]. We tested adhesion performance as shear load resistance (g) on a glass plate, and as the angle of failure (°) when the plate was gradually inclined relative to horizontal. Average angle of failure and shear resistance differed among ...

On the genus Paccius (Araneae, Trachelidae) in Madagascar: two new species, redescriptions, and a key to the species

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On the genus Paccius (Araneae, Trachelidae) in Madagascar: two new species, redescriptions, and a key to the species

Abstract

The Malagasy and Seychellois endemic dark sac spider genus Paccius Simon, 1898 is a putatively highly diverse radiation of trachelids that is currently very poorly known. Here, we describe two new species based on recently collected specimens in Madagascar: P. haddadi sp. nov., from the dry forests of the north-west, and P. mahimborondro sp. nov., from rainforests in the far north. We also redescribe P. madagascariensis (Simon, 1889) and P. mucronatus Simon, 1898, species previously described without illustrations, and provide the first key to the species of the genus.

Pett, B.L., Escobar-Toledo, J. & Ferreira, E. (2025) On the genus Paccius (Araneae, Trachelidae) in Madagascar: two new species, redescriptions, and a key to the species. Zootaxa, 5716 (2), 257–267. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5716.2.5