New locality records and future habitat suitability of Sassanidotus gracilis (Birula, 1900) (Scorpiones: Buthidae) in the Iran–Afghanistan–Pakistan arid belt

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  New locality records and future habitat suitability of Sassanidotus gracilis (Birula, 1900) (Scorpiones: Buthidae) in the Iran–Afghanistan–Pakistan arid belt Abstract This study reports new locality records from Iran and a climate-based habitat suitability assessment for Sassanidotus gracilis (Birula, 1900) (Scorpiones: Buthidae) in the Iran–Afghanistan–Pakistan arid belt. We document new specimens from Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran, with an updated distribution map and illustrations, and we model the species' potential distribution across south-eastern Iran and adjacent parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Habitat suitability was associated mainly with precipitation seasonality, precipitation of the wettest month, precipitation of the driest month, and slope. In an arid setting these rainfall variables are unlikely to indicate a need for moist habitat; they more plausibly track seasonal productivity and the terrain features that provide shelter. Present-day suitable areas...

First catalog of spiders of Morocco (Arachnida: Araneae): A critical review of all spider species cited from Morocco with their localities

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First catalog of spiders of Morocco (Arachnida: Araneae): A critical review of all spider species cited from Morocco with their localities

Abstract

Following the recent publication of the first checklist of spiders in Morocco recorded between 1840 and 2024 (Benhalima & Bosmans 2024), the authors have cataloged all the species mentioned and supplemented this list with others published up to January 2026. The authors present the first catalog of spider species in Morocco, documenting 638 species belonging to 246 genera and 47 families including 180 endemics. According to the World Spider Catalog (2026) and the present work, 63 species are not included, 7 species of dubious origin are not omitted from the catalog. For each species, a detailed list of all localities cited in the literature is provided, along with full references. All data are examined and critically analyzed using the most recent available information.

Benhalima, S. & Bosmans, R. (2026) First catalog of spiders of Morocco (Arachnida: Araneae): A critical review of all spider species cited from Morocco with their localities. Zootaxa , 5838 (1), 1–127. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5838.1.1