Distributional Notes on Three Wolf Spider Species (Araneae: Lycosidae) Recorded for the First Time in Diyala Province, Iraq

Posted by
  Distributional Notes on Three Wolf Spider Species (Araneae: Lycosidae) Recorded for the First Time in Diyala Province, Iraq Abstract This study presents new distributional data for three wolf spider species (Araneae: Lycosidae) from Diyala Province in eastern Iraq. Specimens were gathered from different districts and habitats between July 2025 and June 2026. The species Arctosa tbilisiensis Mcheidze, 1946, Lycosa piochardi Simon, 1876, and Wadicosa fidelis (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872) are recorded for the first time in Diyala, extending their known ranges within Iraq. The paper describes key diagnostic morphological features and includes information about the examined specimens and their local distributions. These findings improve knowledge of the distribution of Iraqi Lycosidae and reveal that Diyala Province, despite its habitat variety, remains insufficiently studied. The records serve as a valuable baseline for future taxonomic, faunistic, and ecological research on spiders i...

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

Posted by

 


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 Taxonomy, 1051(1), 1–50. https://doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2026.1051.3261