In Memoriam: Gérard Dupré (1947–2026) — A Life Devoted to the Study of Scorpions

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  Photo Credit: Le Parisien In Memoriam: Gérard Dupré (1947–2026) — A Life Devoted to the Study of Scorpions The passing of Gérard Dupré (1947–2026) is a deeply felt loss for those of us who share an interest in the study of scorpions and other arachnids. Throughout his life, he dedicated himself to documenting and preserving arachnological knowledge, contributing valuable work on scorpion taxonomy, distribution, and bibliography. His careful attention to the literature helped bring clarity and organization to a field whose history spans centuries and many languages. Gérard was also closely associated with the journal Arachnides , which became an important outlet for sharing research, faunistic records, and historical notes within the arachnological community. Through this work, he helped ensure that observations and studies—large and small—were preserved and made accessible to others with similar scientific interests. Beyond his scholarly contributions, Gérard was a humble and gen...

New species of Metagonia Simon with directionally asymmetric male and female genitalia (Araneae, Pholcidae)

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New species of Metagonia Simon with directionally asymmetric male and female genitalia (Araneae, Pholcidae)


Abstract

Genital asymmetry is a rare phenomenon in spiders, and directional asymmetry, where all specimens are same-sided, is particularly scarce. In the New World genus Metagonia, only M. mariguitarensis (González-Sponga, 1998) was previously known to be directionally asymmetric. Here we describe three further species in the genus Metagonia that all share directionally asymmetric male and female genitalia: M. embera Huber sp. nov. (Colombia and Panama), M. uca Huber sp. nov. (Colombia), and M. wayuu Huber sp. nov. (Colombia and Venezuela). Metagonia uca is the species with the most extreme asymmetry and also the only species where female asymmetry is not limited to internal structures but extends to the epigynal scape. Interspecific CO1 distances among these four species ranged from 15.5 to 20.9%. Intraspecific distances mostly ranged from 0.0–1.7%, but higher values were found for M. mariguitarensis (up to 9.1%). While the available evidence suggests that directional asymmetry in Metagonia arose only once (in the last common ancestor of the four species above), the origin of the more widespread asymmetry in Metagonia (female antisymmetry) is less clear. We briefly discuss the phylogenetic pattern of antisymmetry in Metagonia, concluding that further focused research is necessary to provide the basic data for such an analysis.

Huber, B. A., & Meng, G. (2025). New species of Metagonia Simon with directionally asymmetric male and female genitalia (Araneae, Pholcidae). European Journal of Taxonomy, 1026(1), 199–235. https://doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2025.1026.3117