On a new genus of dwarf tarantulas (Araneae: Mygalomorphae: Theraphosidae) endemic from Peru: evidence from morphology and molecular phylogeny, with description of three new species

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  On a new genus of dwarf tarantulas ( Araneae : Mygalomorphae : Theraphosidae ) endemic from Peru: evidence from morphology and molecular phylogeny, with description of three new species Abstract Recent field campaigns conducted in Peru along with the examination of museum specimens allowed us to identify small tarantulas that do not fit with any known Theraphosidae genera. Morphology and additional molecular evidence from the mitochondrial gene COI led us to propose Kiskalla gen. nov . from southern Peru, at Puno region. Three new species of Kiskalla gen. nov . ( K. ignacioi sp. nov ., K. yeisoni sp. nov . and K. zukuapasanka sp. nov .) are herein described, diagnosed and illustrated. Kiskalla gen. nov . differs from the known Theraphosinae genera in the presence of lateral stripes on the abdomen and a small dorsal arrowhead-shaped patch of type III urticating setae, presence of a large number of spines on all legs, short and stout setae on the dorsal metatarsi encirc...

Stability of short-term boldness personality under nutritional and disturbance stress in a social spider

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By (c) @dineshphotography7797, some rights reserved (CC BY) - https://www.inaturalist.org/photos/245994740, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=147097695

Stability of short-term boldness personality under nutritional and disturbance stress in a social spider

Abstract

Background

Consistent among-individual differences in behaviours, also known as animal personalities, are ubiquitous across the animal kingdom. At the same time, the expression of these behaviours may remain context- and time- dependent. Social spiders lack morphological castes and apparent dominant hierarchies, but show consistent among-individual differences in behaviours such as boldness and aggression. Previous studies have shown that these personality traits are not associated with task participation and that personality repeatability weakens over longer durations. In this study, we tested whether short-term boldness was stable across intrinsic (nutritional state) and extrinsic (disturbance) contexts in the Indian social spider, Stegodyphus sarasinorum. We subjected individuals to feeding or starvation and repeated disturbance or no disturbance treatments, and measured boldness over three consecutive days.

Results

We found that neither variation in nutritional state nor disturbance influenced the mean boldness scores or their repeatability. Our results show that boldness is robust to short-term changes in hunger and disturbance.

Conclusion

The ecological and social functions of the boldness personality trait remain unresolved in social spiders and further studies are warranted to understand how exactly among-individual variation in boldness influences colony productivity and demographic outcomes.

Parthasarathy, B., Friedrich, K. & Schneider, J.M. Stability of short-term boldness personality under nutritional and disturbance stress in a social spider. Front Zool (2026). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12983-026-00612-7