Olfactory learning in two Amblypygi species Paraphrynus laevifrons and Phrynus pseudoparvulus

  Olfactory learning in two Amblypygi species Paraphrynus laevifrons and Phrynus pseudoparvulus Abstract A wide diversity of arthropod taxa have demonstrated the capacity for learning, but most of our current understanding comes from only a select subset of this highly diverse clade, with most studies focusing on various insect groups. Amblypygids (Order Amblypygi, Class Arachnida), however, are emerging as a model group for studying sensory integration and the neural substrates associated with learning and memory, especially as it relates to navigation. These nocturnal creatures possess specialized sensory appendages and one of the largest and most complex mushroom bodies - the part of the arthropod brain associated with learning and memory - of any arthropod. Prior field studies on multiple species demonstrate sophisticated homing abilities while laboratory-based behavioral assays in  Phrynus marginemaculatus  confirm olfactory-based learning associated with a refuge. I...

Spiders from the Arganeraie Biosphere Reserve of Souss-Massa region (Morocco), and descriptions of two new species (Arachnida: Araneae: Gnaphosidae, Salticidae)

 


Spiders from the Arganeraie Biosphere Reserve of Souss-Massa region (Morocco), and descriptions of two new species (Arachnida: Araneae: Gnaphosidae, Salticidae)

Abstract

This study presents a preliminary faunistic survey of spiders from the Arganeraie Biosphere Reserve in the Souss-Massa region of Morocco covering 39 species across 17 families collected between January 2022 and June 2025. Two species are new to science: Cesonia africana Lecigne #38; Ouakri sp. nov. and Menemerus currens Lecigne sp. nov. Five other species are new records for Morocco, i.e., Nemesia uncinata Bacelar, 1933, Phlegra yaelae Prószyński,1998, Mogrus sahariensis Berland #38; Millot, 1941, Cebrennus laurae Jäger, 2014 and Polenecia producta (Simon, 1873). Several other species, already known from Morocco, are noteworthy taxa, e.g., Aelurillus hirtipes Denis, 1960, Cebrennus rungsi Jäger, 2000, Eresus elhennawyi Řezáč, Vaněk #38; Střeštík, 2023, Oecobius machadoi Wunderlich, 1995, Olios pictus (Simon, 1885) and Steatoda ingeae Van Keer, 2024. The following new synonym is proposed: Zelotes oryx (Simon, 1880) = Zelotes tragicus (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872) syn. nov. Our findings expand our knowledge of Moroccan spiders and highlight the biodiversity of historically poorly studied habitats, thus warranting further, targeted research.

Ouakri, N., Lecigne, S., Abou Oualid, J., & Dugon, M. (2026). Spiders from the Arganeraie Biosphere Reserve of Souss-Massa region (Morocco), and descriptions of two new species (Arachnida: Araneae: Gnaphosidae, Salticidae). European Journal of Taxonomy1051(1), 1–50. https://doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2026.1051.3261