First record of Pandava Lehtinen, 1967, in the Middle East, with a new record of Nurscia albomaculata (Lucas, 1846) (Araneae: Titanoecidae) from Iraq

 

First record of Pandava Lehtinen, 1967, in the Middle East, with a new record of Nurscia albomaculata (Lucas, 1846) (Araneae: Titanoecidae) from Iraq

Abstract

We report the first record of the titanoecid spider genus Pandava Lehtinen, 1967, from the Middle East, represented by P. hunanensis Yin & Bao, 2001, a species previously known only from southern China. Additionally, Nurscia albomaculata (Lucas, 1846) is recorded for the first time from Iraq. These records fill a knowledge gap of more than 110 years regarding the representation of the family Titanoecidae in Iraq. The occurrence of Pandava in Iraq represents a remarkable westward and northward range extension of approximately 3000 km from its nearest previously known natural distribution.

Al-Khailani, M. A., & Al-Khazali, A. M. (2026). First record of Pandava Lehtinen, 1967, in the Middle East, with a new record of Nurscia albomaculata (Lucas, 1846) (Araneae: Titanoecidae) from Iraq . Ecologica Montenegrina, 94, 254–263. https://doi.org/10.37828/em.2026.94.18