First record of Megaselia abdita (Schmitz, 1959) (Diptera: Phoridae) infestation in captive tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae

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  First record of Megaselia abdita (Schmitz, 1959) (Diptera: Phoridae) infestation in captive tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae Abstract Flies of the genus Megaselia Rondani, 1856 exhibit exceptional ecological flexibility, with certain species acting as facultative parasites. This study presents the first documented cases of Megaselia abdita (Schmitz, 1959) infesting captive tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae, Ceratogyrus darlingi Pocock, 1897 and Psalmopoeus irminia Saager, 1994) in terrarium settings. Our observations demonstrate that M . abdita colonise artificial habitats and exploit spider hosts similarly to Megaselia scalaris . Citation: Szymański, D.M., Szymański, D., Kłonowski, P. (2026). First record of Megaselia abdita (Schmitz, 1959) (Diptera: Phoridae) infestation in captive tarantulas (Araneae: Theraphosidae). Dipteron, 42, 25-29. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23137389

Taxonomic notes on the tarantula genus Heterothele Karsch, 1879 (Araneae: Theraphosidae) with a new synonymy, resurrection of H. longipalpis Karsch, 1879, two nomina dubia, and description of a new species from Tanzania

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Taxonomic notes on the tarantula genus Heterothele Karsch, 1879 (Araneae: Theraphosidae) with a new synonymy, resurrection of H. longipalpis Karsch, 1879, two nomina dubia, and description of a new species from Tanzania

Abstract

The historically  enigmatic  yet  distinctive  genus  HeterotheleKarsch, 1879 is revised. Heterothele afnis Laurent, 1946 syn. nov. is  proposed as a  junior  synonym of  Heterothele honestaKarsch, 1879. Heterothele longipalpis Karsch, 1879 stat. rev. et comb. nov. is revalidated from the synonymy with H. gabonen-sis (Lucas, 1853), and H.  villosella Strand, 1907  stat.  rest. is revalidated from its previous status as a nomen  dubium. Con-versely,  H.  ogbunikia  Smith,  1990  is  proposed  as  a  species inquirenda based on the fact it is not an adult female, but rather an immature male, and H. atropha Simon, 1907 and H. decem-notata (Simon, 1891) are proposed as nomina dubia. Redescrip-tions of the type specimens of  H. honesta  Karsch, 1879 (type species),  H. darcheni  (Benoit, 1966),  H. hullwilliamsi  Smith, 1990, H. longipalpis Karsch, 1879  stat. rev. et comb. nov., H. ogbunikia  Smith,  1990  species  inquirenda,  and  H.  spinipesPocock, 1897 are presented. Heterothele maxima sp. nov. from Tanzania is described as new. 

Acknowledgment: I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Danni Sherwood for providing the complete manuscript.

Sherwood, Danniella. (2026). Taxonomic notes on the tarantula genus Heterothele Karsch, 1879 (Araneae: Theraphosidae) with a new synonymy, resurrection of H. longipalpis Karsch, 1879, two nomina dubia, and description of a new species from Tanzania.