Remarkable micro-endemism and high congeneric richness: eight new cave-restricted species of Pseudochthonius Balzan, 1892 (Pseudoscorpiones, Chthoniidae) from the Brazilian semi-arid

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  Remarkable micro-endemism and high congeneric richness: eight new cave-restricted species of Pseudochthonius Balzan, 1892 (Pseudoscorpiones, Chthoniidae) from the Brazilian semi-arid Abstract Eight new species of pseudoscorpions belonging to the genus Pseudochthonius Balzan, 1892 are described from the semi-arid region of Brazil. Comprehensive morphological descriptions, diagnostic characters, detailed illustrations, and ecological remarks of the habitats are provided for Pseudochthonius celestialis sp. nov., P. caritas sp. nov., P. patientia sp. nov., P. temperantia sp. nov., P. diligentia sp. nov., P. castitas sp. nov., P. humilitas sp. nov., and P. benignitas sp. nov. In addition, we present a brief discussion of the potential factors underlying the remarkable congeneric species richness observed in this geographically restricted region, as well as the principal threats faced by these species. These findings underscore the importance of conserving caves in order to pr...

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 Citation2026). Members of the family are distributed worldwide, mostly in tropical and subtropical regions (World Spider Catalog Citation2026). Within this large family, the genus Zodarion Walckenaer, is represented by 176 species (World Spider Catalog Citation2026). Currently, 157 Zodarion species are known from Europe (Nentwig et al. Citation2026). In Turkey, the family Zodariidae comprises 37 species in four genera. Most of them, 34 species, belong to the genus Zodarion (Danışman et al., Citation2025). Within the genus, eight species of the ‘germanicum’ species group are found in Turkey: Zodarion abantense Wunderlich, Z. bigaense Bosmans, Özkütük, Varlı, and Kunt, Z. bozdagensis Coşar, Z. korgei Wunderlich, Z. izmirense Danışman and Coşar, Z. robertbosmans Wunderlich, Z. turcicum Wunderlich and Z. varoli Akpınar.

This article aims to describe and illustrate a new species from Turkey, found in Hakkari province in the Eastern Anatolia region. Its distribution is also presented.

Coşar, İ., Danışman, T., & Yağmur, E. A. (2026). Description of a new species of Zodarion Walckenaer (Araneae: Zodariidae) from Turkey. Journal of Natural History, 60(25–28), 1447–1452. https://doi.org/10.1080/00222933.2026.2675403