Venomics of the six-eyed sand spider, Sicarius rugosus (Araneae: Sicariidae), from the neotropical dry forest of Costa Rica

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  Venomics of the six-eyed sand spider, Sicarius rugosus (Araneae: Sicariidae), from the neotropical dry forest of Costa Rica Abstract Background Sicarius rugosus , the only member of the genus that inhabits Central America, is phylogenetically related to South American  Sicarius  spiders. These originated from a common ancestor with sister African species. Like  Loxosceles ,  Sicarius  exhibits venom phospholipase D activity due to a group of toxins known collectively as SicTox. Methods A gel-assisted, bottom-up, proteomic analysis was performed to characterize the venom composition of  S. rugosus . Hyaluronidase activity was determined using zymography. Results We identified several SicTox sequences, all classified as β-clade paralogs and sharing unique peptides with proteins from  S. patagonicus ,  S. peruensis,  and other species. Enzymes such as metalloproteinases, including putative astacins, carboxypeptidases, and angiotensin-conv...

One new species of Drapetisca Menge, 1866 (Araneae, Linyphiidae) from Gele Mountain, Chongqing, China

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One new species of Drapetisca Menge, 1866 (Araneae, Linyphiidae) from Gele Mountain, Chongqing, China

Abstract

Background

The genus Drapetisca comprises 7 species distributed in Canada, Central Asia, China, Caucasus, Europe, Japan, Russia (Europe to the Far East), and the USA, out of which five species have been recorded in China (World Spider Catalog 2025). The males and females of Drapetisca can be distinguished from all other Linyphiidae genera by the palpal distal arm of the paracymbium anchor-shaped in the retrolateral view and the protruding epigyne without a scape.

New information

While examining Linyphiidae Blackwall, 1859 specimens from Gele Mountain in Chongqing, we discovered a new species of the genus Drapetisca, D. dentata sp. nov. Detailed descriptions, photographs of copulatory organs and somatic features, and a distribution map are provided.

Shi H-X, Liu Z-Y, Irfan M, Wang L-Y (2026) One new species of Drapetisca Menge, 1866 (Araneae, Linyphiidae) from Gele Mountain, Chongqing, China. Biodiversity Data Journal 14: e180901. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.14.e180901