A Remarkable Discovery: Exploring a Rare Eresus and Spider Wasp Interaction

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  Photo Credit: © Antonino Rametta . All photographs are used with permission. No part of these images may be reproduced, distributed, or used in any form without the prior written permission of the photographer. A Remarkable Discovery: Exploring a Rare Eresus and Spider Wasp Interaction One of the most rewarding aspects of maintaining Arácnido Taxonomy is hearing from naturalists and photographers around the world who take the time to share their discoveries. Every so often, an email arrives that immediately captures your attention. Not because it claims to rewrite what we know about biodiversity, but because it documents something that very few people have the opportunity to witness. Recently, I was contacted by a naturalist in Sicily who shared a series of exceptionally high-quality photographs of a female ladybird spider ( Eresus ) during what appeared to be an interaction with a spider wasp. Along with the images came a simple question: "Could this be scientifically import...

Spiders of the Orsiera Rocciavrè Natural Park and Foresto Ravine Natural Reserve (NW Italy): a faunistic synthesis with data from the “Biodiversity Monitoring Project”

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Spiders of the Orsiera Rocciavrè Natural Park and Foresto Ravine Natural Reserve (NW Italy): a faunistic synthesis with data from the “Biodiversity Monitoring Project”

We present an inventory of the spiders (Arachnida, Araneae) inhabiting the Orsiera Rocciavrè Natural Park and the Foresto Ravine Nature Reserve (NW Italy). This work combines data from bibliographic sources, unpublished material, and new sampling carried out between 2018 and 2019 as part of the “Biodiversity Monitoring Project,” supplemented by verified iNaturalist observations. In total, we report 212 species belonging to 128 genera and 32 families, including 12 new records for Piedmont. The Linyphiidae Blackwall, 1859 and the Gnaphosidae Banks, 1892 are the most represented families, as in other Alpine parks. Most species exhibit Palearctic or European distributions, with a small proportion being endemic, including rare species such as Rhode testudinea Pesarini, 1984, for which new morphological illustrations are provided. The new data presented here allowed us to investigate species richness and abundance along altitudinal gradients, revealing different patterns between transects. In addition, we conducted an indicator species analysis to identify key species within the altitudinal zonation. Beyond the faunal contribution, we emphasize the importance of faunal inventories as a baseline for future studies on the conservation ecology of spiders, particularly within protected areas.

TOLVE M., Rizzioli B., PANE A. & ISAIA M. 2026. — Spiders of the Orsiera Rocciavrè Natural Park and Foresto Ravine Natural Reserve (NW Italy): a faunistic synthesis with data from the “Biodiversity Monitoring Project”. Zoosystema  48 (6): 139-195. https://doi.org/10.5252/zoosystema2026v48a6 . http://zoosystema.com/48/6