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, ...

First fossil of the pseudoscorpion family Chernetidae Menge, 1855 (Arachnida, Pseudoscorpiones) from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber

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First fossil of the pseudoscorpion family Chernetidae Menge, 1855 (Arachnida, Pseudoscorpiones) from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber

Abstract

Pseudoscorpions (Arachnida: Pseudoscorpiones) are amongst the oldest terrestrial lineages but their fossil record is still very sparse. In recent years, Upper Cretaceous Burmese amber has emerged as an important source for fossil pseudoscorpions. In this study, we extend the fossil record of the family Chernetidae Menge, 1855 – one of the most diverse pseudoscorpion families – by at least 20 million years through the description of a new genus and species, †Burmachernes gen. nov. for the new species †Burmachernes cenomanium sp. nov. from this amber deposit. Although †Burmachernes exhibits the principle synapomorphy of Chernetidae, namely venom glands in the movable chelal finger, it is distinguished from all 121 extant genera as well as the Eocene fossil genus †Oligochernes Beier, 1937 by a unique combination of characters, including trichobothrial arrangement, chaetotaxy, and cheliceral morphology. This fossil represents a significant discovery that fills an important gap in the evolutionary history of Chernetidae, extends the temporal range of the family further back into the Mesozoic, and demonstrates that chernetid pseudoscorpions had already evolved morphological features closely resembling those of their extant relatives.

Willmott LA, Kotthoff U, Harms D (2026) First fossil of the pseudoscorpion family Chernetidae Menge, 1855 (Arachnida, Pseudoscorpiones) from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber. Evolutionary Systematics 10(1): 101-111. https://doi.org/10.3897/evolsyst.10.190572