The largest fossil of the segmented spider Parvithele muelleri Wunderlich, 2017 (Mesothelae: Parvithelidae) from Cretaceous Burmese amber

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  The largest fossil of the segmented spider Parvithele muelleri Wunderlich, 2017 (Mesothelae: Parvithelidae) from Cretaceous Burmese amber Abstract A new specimen of the fossil spider Parvithele muelleri Wunderlich, 2017 (Araneae: Mesothelae) is described from the mid-Cretaceous (ca. 99 Ma) Burmese amber of Myanmar. Like the original holotype, the new specimen is a mature male, which clearly preserves a series of tibial macrospines, similar to the condition in the extant genus Liphistius Schiødte, 1849. Given that the single extant mesothele family, Liphistiidae, is predicted to have radiated ca. 39–58 million years ago, the occurrence of somewhat modern-looking male pedipalp spination in older fossil mesotheles is of considerable interest. The new specimen also shows spinnerets in a relatively posterior position, although variability observed in extant species suggests that this trait may be of limited systematic value. Of particular note is the presence of a large and well-dev...

Morphological revision of the species of Homoeomma Ausserer, 1871 (Araneae: Theraphosidae) from Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay

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Morphological revision of the species of Homoeomma Ausserer, 1871 (Araneae: Theraphosidae) from Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay

Abstract

The Neotropical tarantula genus Homoeomma Ausserer, 1871 is reviewed. After examining type specimens and redescribing several species, H. stradlingi O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1881 and H. strabo (Simon, 1892) are considered junior synonyms of H. familiare Bertkau, 1880; henceforth, the senior synonym of the type species of the genus, and now with a known male representative. H. nigrum is considered nomem dubium. Additionally, Homoeomma hirsutum (Mello-Leitão, 1935) is considered junior synonym of H. montanum (Mello-Leitão, 1923). We also describe the female of H. brasilianum (Chamberlin, 1917). Homoeomma now comprises 12 valid species distributed across Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Uruguay.

Galleti-Lima, A., Yamamoto, F.U., Lucas, S.M., Guadanucci, J.P.L. & Brescovit, A.D. (2026) Morphological revision of the species of Homoeomma Ausserer, 1871 (Araneae: Theraphosidae) from Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. Zootaxa, 5752 (2), 211–237. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5752.2.3