Description of a new species of Zodarion Walckenaer (Araneae: Zodariidae) from Turkey

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  Description of a new species of Zodarion Walckenaer (Araneae: Zodariidae) from Turkey Introduction Zodariidae Thorell, commonly known as ant-eating spiders, is one of the most diverse spider families, comprising over 1300 species across 90 genera (World Spider Catalog  Citation 2026 ). Members of the family are distributed worldwide, mostly in tropical and subtropical regions (World Spider Catalog  Citation 2026 ). Within this large family, the genus Zodarion Walckenaer, is represented by 176 species (World Spider Catalog  Citation 2026 ). Currently, 157 Zodarion species are known from Europe (Nentwig et al .  Citation 2026 ). In Turkey, the family Zodariidae comprises 37 species in four genera. Most of them, 34 species, belong to the genus Zodarion (Danışman et al. ,  Citation 2025 ). Within the genus, eight species of the ‘ germanicum ’ species group are found in Turkey: Zodarion abantense Wunderlich, Z. bigaense Bosmans, Özkütük, Varlı, and Kunt, ...

Egg-Carrying and Cheliceral Comb in Ibaloniinae Harvestmen From the Solomon Islands (Opiliones: Podoctidae)

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Egg-Carrying and Cheliceral Comb in Ibaloniinae Harvestmen From the Solomon Islands (Opiliones: Podoctidae)

ABSTRACT

Four new species of Ibaloniinae harvestmen are described from the Solomon Islands, Melanesia. Based on the original diagnosis of Euibalonius Roewer, 1915, and description of E. maculatus (Roewer, 1915), this material appeared related to that genus. However, examination of syntype photographs of the type species E. maculatus confirmed the validity of Euibalonius, here revalidated from the synonymy of Ibalonius Karsch, 1880, while simultaneously revealing that the Solomon Islands specimens differ substantially from E. maculatus and cannot be accommodated in that genus. The new genus Kakamora gen. nov. is therefore described for the Solomon Islands material. A revised diagnosis of Euibalonius is provided, and a key to the known species of the genus Kakamora is presented. All newly described species bear a cheliceral comb, a structure only recently documented in Podoctidae, and which we also record here for two additional Ibaloniinae species, suggesting broader occurrence within the subfamily. In one of the new species, males were found carrying eggs firmly attached to their femora and tibiae, a behaviour here interpreted as paternal care. This represents a further case of egg carrying by male podoctids, offering a counterpoint to previous doubts about the meaning of this behaviour in the family.

Kury, A. B., Machado, G., Buzatto, B. A., Kekeubata, E., & Medrano, M. (2026). Egg-Carrying and Cheliceral Comb in Ibaloniinae Harvestmen From the Solomon Islands (Opiliones: Podoctidae). Austral Entomology, 65(3), e70075. https://doi.org/10.1111/aen.70075