The neonicotinoid imidacloprid impairs the predatory performance and functional response of the jumping spider Helpis minitabunda (Araneae, Salticidae)

Posted by
  The neonicotinoid imidacloprid impairs the predatory performance and functional response of the jumping spider Helpis minitabunda (Araneae, Salticidae) Abstract The neonicotinoid imidacloprid can cause lethal and sublethal effects in non-target organisms, including impaired behavior, reduced fertility, disrupted locomotion, and reduced predatory performance in arthropods. Spiders are among the most abundant arthropod predators in terrestrial ecosystems, including agricultural ecosystems, yet the effects of neonicotinoids on the predatory function of jumping spiders remain poorly understood. The functional response of a predator describes how predation rates change with prey density and is key to understanding predator–prey dynamics. We tested whether acute exposure to a commercial formulation of imidacloprid at field-recommended concentrations alters the functional response of the Aussie bronze jumping spider, Helpis minitabunda (L. Koch, 1880). We compared the predation of treat...

Three’s a Crowd: On the Taxonomic Status of Three Species of Macrothele Ausserer, 1871, Described from Africa by Pierre L. G. Benoit (Araneae: Macrothelidae)

Posted by

 


Three’s a Crowd: On the Taxonomic Status of Three Species of Macrothele Ausserer, 1871, Described from Africa by Pierre L. G. Benoit (Araneae: Macrothelidae)

Abstract and figures
The three macrothelid species described by the late P. L. G. Benoit at the Royal Museum for Central Africa are digitised and re-evaluated: Macrothele abrupta Benoit, 1965 and Macrothele incisa Benoit, 1965 are declared nomina dubia as the name bearing types of both taxa are juvenile. Macrothele triangularis Benoit, 1965 is a valid species and we depict and describe its spermathecae for the first time.

Sherwood, Danniella & Jocqué, Rudy. (2025). Three's a crowd: on the taxonomic status of three species of Macrothele Ausserer, 1871 described from Africa by Pierre L. G. Benoit (Araneae: Macrothelidae). Revista Ibérica de Aracnología. 47. 69-72.