Five new Liphistius species (Araneae, Mesothelae) from Thailand

Five new Liphistius species are described: L. lahu from northern Thailand, L. isan from northeastern Thailand, L. sayam from central Thailand, L. phileion from southeastern Thailand and L. phuketensis from southern Thailand. Liphistius thaleban Schwendinger is recorded from a new locality in southern Thailand. Notes on natural history are given, zoogeography and relationships between the species examined are discussed and four superspecies are distinguished within the trung -species group.     

ON THE BIOLOGY OF TWO LATRODECTUS SPIDERS IN PALESTINE

Summary— Some biological facts have been given concerning L. tredecim-guttatus and L. pallidus in Palestine. Their distribution and development have been dealt with. Special attention was paid to the structure of the web and the role the egg-sacs play in young spiders. The factors regulating the leaving of the sac were stated. Observations have been made on the process of copulation. The nature of the food has been investigated.
The question of the amount of venom of both species was given special emphasis, and along with some subsidiary questions an experiment was made to compare the strength of the venom of both Palestinian spiders. It has been shown that in the years in which observations were made the strength of the venom of Latrodectus tredecim-guttatus was greater than that of L. pallidus.     

New Liphistius species (Araneae, Mesothelae) from southern Thailand and northern Malaysia

Four new Liphistius species are described from southern Thailand: L. rufipes (also occurring in northern Malaysia), L. fuscus, L. castaneus and L. albipes. The males of L. bicoloripes Ono and L. schwendingeri Ono are described for the first time. Zoogeography and taxonomic relationships are discussed, notes are given on the natural history of each species.     

On the spider genus Liphistius (Araneae: Mesothelae) in Thailand and Burma

Seven of the ten Liphistius species already known from Thailand and Burma are characterized; three new species, L. lannaianus sp.n., L. marginatus sp.n., L. thaleban sp.n., and the males of L. lordac Platnick & Scdgwiek and L. niphanae Ono are described. Taxonomy and relationships are discussed; considerable variation in female internal genitalia is shown. Notes are given on natural history, distribution, burrow structure, phenology and behaviour.     

New Liphistius species (Araneae, Mesothelae) from western and eastern Thailand

Eight new Liphistius species, L. erawan from western Thailand, L. tenuis, L. nesioticus from southeastern Thailand and L. dangrek, L. suwat, L. thoranie, L. pusohm, and L. onoi from northeastern Thailand, are described together with the male of L. ochraceus Ono and Schwendinger. Natural history, zoogeography and relationships between species are discussed. Two superspecies are distinguished. © 1996 The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters     

The life-cycle of the Wolf spider Pardosa lugubris in Holland

Pardosa lugubris in Scotland has a 2-year life-cycle. In Holland the situation is less clear-cut: spiderlings emerging from the summer egg sac can reach sexual maturity by the following spring. These spiders, with a 1-year life-cycle, have one instar fewer than the Scottish spiders. The Dutch spiderlings from the autumn egg sac, like the Scottish spiders, have a 2-year life-cycle and have the same number of instars as the Scottish spiders.
The shorter life-cycle of some of the Dutch spiders is probably due to the fact that summer temperatures are higher in Holland than in Scotland. It is suggested that the length of the life-cycle may be an important factor in spider distribution and that this may account for the relative scarcity of large spider species in high latitudes.     

The spinnerets and epiandrous glands of spiders

The spinnerets of spiders are carried on the fourth and fifth segments of the abdomen (opisthosoma). Primitively there are two pairs, anterior lateral ( al ) and anterior median ( am ) on the fourth segment, and two pairs, posterior lateral ( pl ) and posterior median ( pm ) on the fifth, am are present in Liphistius but are never functional. In mygalomorphs am are invariably absent, and usually al also. In araneomorphs am are either reduced to a function-less colulus, perhaps absent altogether, or represented by the cribellum, which is a specialized spinning organ.
It seems unlikely that the lateral and median spinnerets correspond to the exopodites and endopodites of a biramous limb, which limbs are characteristic of the Crustacea, a group having no close relationship to the Arachnida. From embryology it seems clear that the lateral spinnerets are the segmental appendages. Glands, here described as the epiandrous glands, very similar to spinning glands, occur on the second abdominal segment of most male spiders. It is suggested that these may be serially homologous with the median spinnerets, which would then not be appendicular in origin but would be modifications of ventral glandular structures.     

LABORATORY STUDIES ON THE CHEMO-SENSORY REACTIONS OF BLOWFLIES

Attraction of various blowflies to sheep wool has been demonstrated under laboratory conditions using a choice-chamber technique. The attractive factor in wool is intimately associated with the wool fibre for it does not disappear during storage and it is not completely removed by washing.
Only female flies were attracted to wool. The highest degree of attraction was obtained from fertilized females which had daily access to meat. Even in the absence of fertilization and meat, attraction was not completely abolished.
The species and strains tested can be placed in the following order in terms of strength of response to sheep wool: Lucilia sericata (British), L. cuprina (tested on damp floor)>L. sericata (Danish: country)> L. sericata (Danish: city), L. sericata (Australian) > L. illustris, L. caesar. No response was given by Calliphora vomitoria.
The olfactory organs involved in the response to wool are mainly on the antennae but antennaeless L. sericata and L. cuprina with some tarsi removed were still able to show some response to wool provided that they were tested on a damp floor. In the course of testing the olfactory responses it was also shown that the main humidity receptors are present on the antennae.
The existence of a 'wool-factor' to which only certain strains of L. sericata and L. cuprina are specially sensitive offers a possible explanation for the greater efficiency of these species as myiasis-producing forms.     

Population dynamics,hunting nature on insect pests and existence of symbiotic bacterial microbes among leading transgenic cotton spiders

The genetically modified cotton holding Bt proteins, is noxious to bollworms larvae but very little is known about its impact on population of non-target spiders within the field. Studies conducted with the aim to identify spiders along with their abundance, prevalence pattern, preying habit on insect pests in Bt cotton (L280, Cry2Ab4) and commonness of symbiotic bacteria in these spiders. Spiders collections were made via vial tapping/jarring, from May to end of October (2018). In total, 13,342 spiders were recorded during the entire cropping season. Least relative abundance was in May (0.28%), highest in August (30.39%) while ahead decline was observed, reached to 12% in October. The 27 species were verified, least richness was in May (3 species), high in August (19 species), later in the end, reduced to 7 species. High abundance was of Hylyphantes graminicola (68.56%) and Neoscona theisi (19.98%). Existence of H. graminicola and Pardosa astrigera observed during the whole cropping season. Presence of seven guilds among spiders had a diverse nature of hunting insect pests and on number of species existed in the crop, maximum was from direct hunting habit. Composition and community structure of microbiota varied as of spider species. Proteobacteria was the most abundant bacterial phylum and topmost genus was Wolbachia in observed spiders. Five groups of bacteria distinguished across 4 clusters of spiders depending on core community of symbiotic bacterial genera. This effort is an initial step to get knowhow about spiders in Bt cotton, which will facilitate future research studies concerning spiders.     

Island history affects faunal composition: the treeshrews (Mammalia: Scandentia: Tupaiidae) from the Mentawai and Batu Islands,Indonesia

The Mentawai and Batu Island groups off the west coast of Sumatra have a complicated geological and biogeographical history. The Batu Islands have shared a connection with the Sumatran ‘mainland’ during periods of lowered sea level, whereas the Mentawai Islands, despite being a similar distance from Sumatra, have remained isolated from Sumatra, and probably from the Batu Islands as well. These contrasting historical relationships to Sumatra have influenced the compositions of the respective mammalian faunas of these island groups. Treeshrews (Scandentia, Tupaiidae) from these islands have, at various times in their history, been recognized as geographically circumscribed populations of a broadly distributed Tupaia glis, subspecies, or distinct species. We used multivariate analyses of measurements from the skull and hands to compare the island populations from Siberut (Mentawai Islands) and Tanahbala (Batu Islands) with the geographically adjacent species from the southern Mentawai Islands (T. chrysogaster) and Sumatra (T. ferruginea). Results from both the skull and manus of the Siberut population show that it is most similar to T. chrysogaster, whereas the Tanahbala population is more similar to T. ferruginea, confirming predictions based on island history. These results are further corroborated by mammae counts. Based on these lines of evidence, we include the Siberut population in T. chrysogaster and the Tanahbala population in T. ferruginea. Our conclusions expand the known distributions of both the Mentawai and Sumatran species. The larger geographical range of the endangered T. chrysogaster has conservation implications for this Mentawai endemic, so populations and habitat should be re‐evaluated on each of the islands it inhabits. However, until such a re‐evaluation is conducted, we recommend that the IUCN Red List status of this species be changed from ‘Endangered’ to ‘Data Deficient’. Published 2013. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2014, 111 , 290–304.     

The taxonomy of some British Littorina species, with notes on their reproduction (Mollusca: Prosobranchia)

The rough periwinkle Littorina saxatilis is considered, in current literature, to consist of various sympatric "subspecies" and "varieties". These, it has been suggested, are incipient species and are evidence for sympatric speciation.
This paper shows that in Wales the "saxatilis" aggregate consists of four separate, fully sympatric species: L. rudis, patula, nigrolineata and neglecta . Differences between these species include proportions, sculpture and size of the shell, range of colour patterns, the anatomy of the genitalia, and isozyme patterns. The possible evidence for incipient species is discussed and rejected.
The diversity of penis form amongst the British winkles is remarkable, and it is suggested that in these sympatric species the structure of the penis could be of importance in species recognition.
The four species occupy different zones on the shore and three certainly differ also in their methods of reproduction: L. rudis is ovoviviparous and contains embryos throughout the year, patula is ovoviviparous but contains embryos only in winter, nigrolineata is oviparous. The reproduction and dispersal methods of all British winkles are reviewed. The evidence available supports the view that non-planktonic dispersal is an adaptation which, in species whose shell colour varies considerably from one locality to another, enables each population to become adapted to its local environmental conditions. Ovoviviparity occurs in high-shore non-planktonic species, and may be an adaptation to avoid the dangers of egg desiccation. Planktonic dispersal is found in species whose shell colour does not vary as much as in non-planktonic ones. In these species, it is argued that a common planktonic pool enables a rapid re-colonization in the case of local decrease in population numbers, and also the rapid dispersal of successful mutations.     

High incidence of the maternally inherited bacterium Cardinium in spiders

Inherited bacteria are now recognized as important players in arthropod evolution and ecology. Here, we test spiders, a group recently identified as possessing inherited bacteria commonly, for the presence of two reproductive parasites, Cardinium hertigii (Bacteroidetes group) and Wolbachia (α-proteobacteria), estimating incidence, prevalence, any sex bias in infection, and infection diversity, for a panel of field-collected specimens. We identify spiders as a hotspot for Cardinium . Present in 22% of the sampled species, incidence was significantly higher than that previously recorded in insects. Where present, Cardinium infection occurred at medium prevalence without evidence of sex bias in prevalence that would indicate sex-ratio distortion activity. Wolbachia was present in 37% of species, but revealed a gradation from being rare to very common. In one case, Wolbachia was found significantly more commonly in females than males, indicating it may act as a sex-ratio distorter in some species. Breeding work conducted on two species confirmed that Wolbachia and Cardinium were transmitted maternally, which represents the first proof of inheritance of these symbionts in spiders. Overall, this study demonstrates that the majority of spider species are infected with inherited bacteria, and their role in host biology clearly requires determination.     

Non-webbuilding spiders: prey specialists or generalists?

Summary Feeding experiments were performed with seven species of non-webbuilding spiders and a variety of prey taxa. Some species were generally polyphagous whereas other spiders restricted their prey to a few groups. At one end of the spectrum of prey specialization the thomisid Misumena vatia is limited to a few taxa of possible prey (Table 1). The literature of prey records of non-webbuilding spiders is reviewed (Table 2) with special emphasis on oligophagous or monophagous spiders. Monophagous spiders are generally rare and have specialized on only a few prey taxa: social insects (ants, bees, termites) and spiders.     

Predation by cosmopolitan spiders upon the medically significant pest species Loxosceles reclusa (Araneae: Sicariidae): limited possibilities for biological control

Interspecific predation of three cosmopolitan house spiders, Achearanea tepidariorum (Kock 1841) (Theridiidae), Steotoda triangulosa (Walckenaer 1802) (Theridiidae), and Pholcus phalangioides (Doleschall 1859) (Pholcidae), and the medically significant brown recluse spider, Loxosceles reclusa (Sicariidae) were examined to evaluate transitive predatory relationships and to explore the potential use of cosmopolitan spiders as effective biological control agents on L. reclusa. Fifty houses from northeastern Kansas were visually inspected from May to December 2002 for cosmopolitan spiders and L. reclusa. In 25 houses, insect monitoring traps were used to sample spider diversity and abundance. The remaining 25 houses were monitored to examine intraguild predation and spider behavior. If cosmopolitan spiders have the ability to regulate or decrease L. reclusa populations, houses with large cosmopolitan spider populations are expected to have significantly fewer L. reclusa than houses without cosmopolitan spiders. Predation and/or evidence of predation by all three cosmopolitan spiders on L. reclusa was detected in 68% of houses. Spearman's rank correlation analysis showed overall positive relationships between population densities of cosmopolitan spiders and L. reclusa. When evaluated independently, the presence of both A. tepidariorum and S. triangulosa showed negative, yet nonsignificant, relationships with L. reclusa densities, whereas P. phalangioides showed a positive nonsignificant relationship. Although statistical tests showed a decrease in L. reclusa population densities with increased population densities of two cosmopolitan species, alluding to a potential beneficial interaction for biological control, observations of spider behavior, web positioning (niche partitioning), and predation showed little possibility of biological control capabilities.     

AN ECOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE ENCHYTRAEID WORM POPULATION OF SEWAGE BACTERIA BEDS LABORATORY EXPERIMENTS

This paper records the results of the experimental phase of an ecological study of the enchytraeid population of the sewage beds of the Huddersfield Corporation. The sewage in this drainage area is heavily charged with chemical wastes which have a marked effect on the fauna. Enchytraeus albidus Henle was the dominant worm while Lumbricillus lineatus Mull., the common bacteria bed-worm, was relatively scarce. The ability of these two worms to complete their life cycles in the sewage before and after treatment in particular beds was examined.
The crude Huddersfield sewage proved toxic to both E. albidus and L. lineatus but the former was much more resistant. After treatment in the beds the degree of toxicity was much reduced and the final sewage was harmless to all stages of E. albidus but the eggs of L. lineatus were still unable to develop in it.
The eggs of both species were less resistant to the toxic substances than the young worms; the adults were most resistant. High temperatures lowered toxicity by reducing the duration of the more susceptible early stages.
There was no evidence of physiological adaptation of L. lineatus to conditions in the Huddersfield beds. Wastes from both the main chemical works in the drainage area were examined and shown to be toxic; the domestic sewage was non-toxic. Both the distillate and residue of one of the chemical wastes proved toxic, especially the latter.
The toxicity could be entirely removed from the treated sewage by standing it over activated carbon for a few hours, or permitting slow oxidation for some weeks. The eggs of L. lineatus were used for these tests.
The Huddersfield sewage was very acid from time to time and the acidity reached was sufficient to kill young worms and adults of both species. But this factor was not considered important in the beds owing to the persistent effects of the toxic sewage.     

Observations on the fluorescence and function of spiders' eyes

Preliminary observations on spiders' eyes showed that certain eyes fluoresce in ultraviolet light and others do not. The response of these eyes to ultraviolet and visible light has been investigated to discover the relationship, if any, of eye fluorescence with eye function.
In the first part of this paper it is shown that of eight spiders from families with widely differing habits, vision and behaviour, five species reacted to light fluctuations and to differences in brightness of the primary colours blue, green and red. Three species did not respond to lightand only two, S. scenicus and E. falcata , indicated a preference for blue light. It was also found that the visual sensitivity of S. secenicus extended into the ultraviolet. The second part of the paper gives the results of examination in ultraviolet light of the eyes of 40 species from 11 families. Spiders with poor sight and a preference for shade generally showed a strong fluorescence of all eyes. The anterior median and lateral eyes of those species with good sight fluoresced only weakly or not at all, whereas the posterior median and lateral eyes ofthese spiders fluoresced brightly.
Freshly cut frozen sections of the eyes of two selected species, S. scenicus with good sight and C. similis with poor sight, were examined with the fluorescence, phase and polarizing microscopes. The localization of the fluorescence in these eyes is described and a fluorescent substance, common to all the spiders, was found in the lens of the eyes of most species examined.Additional information on the structure of the cornea and lens was also revealed by phase and polarized light microscopy.
The results suggest that spiders' eyes respond to light in different ways and the fluorescent substance present in the lens of the eyes is related to eye function.     

Morphological and genetic discordance in two species of Bornean Leptobrachium (Amphibia, Anura, Megophryidae)

Recent phylogenetic studies of Southeast Asian megophryid Leptobrachium, while clarifying (1) distinct specific status of three Philippine populations and (2) high genetic diversities within Bornean Leptobrachium montanum, posed two questions, (1) relationships and divergence histories of two Philippine species and Bornean Leptobrachium gunungense, and (2) possible discordance between phylogenetically and morphologically defined lineages. In order to solve these questions, and especially reviewing current taxonomy of Bornean species, we estimated the phylogenetic relationships of endemic Bornean species together with their putative relatives from Philippines and Sumatra, using 2451 bp sequences of the 12S rRNA, tRNA(val), and 16S rRNA of mitochondrial DNA genes. With respect to Leptobrachium hasseltii and Leptobrachium chapaense, lineages from Borneo, Philippines, and Sumatra formed a monophyletic group with Leptobrachium lumadorum from Mindanao as the basal clade, while two other Philippine species from Palawan and Mindoro formed a clade and nested in Bornean lineages. Sister species relationship of the two Philippine species and L. gunungense is not supported, rejecting the hypothesis of Philippine origin of L. gunungense. Phylogeny does not conform to morphological variation, and the topotypic L. montanum and one lineage of Leptobrachium abbotti are genetically very close despite their clear difference in ventral color pattern. Furthermore, each of these species forms a paraphyletic group and contains several lineages, each of which is a candidate of good species. These results clearly indicate that current taxonomy of Bornean species based on several morphological characteristics requires complete revision. Detailed studies on adult and larval morphology, as well as acoustic characteristics, are necessary to evaluate the taxonomic status of all lineages recovered.     

Taxonomic revision of shrews of the genus Crociduras from the Sunda Shelf and Sulawesi with description of two new species (Mammalia: Soricidae)

The skulls of 387 shrews of the genus Crocidura sampled in peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, Java and Sulawesi were submitted to principal component and stepwise discriminant analyses. These analyses helped to delineate morphological taxa in this species-rich genus of mammals. Most morphologic groups could be attributed to described species, except one taxon from Sumatra and one from Sulawesi, which are described and named as new. Most of the 21 species recognized in this paper are endemic to one major island. Although Sulawesi has never been connected to the mainland, it supports at least six species, followed by Sumatra (5–6 species), Java and the Malay Peninsula (4 spp) and Borneo (3 spp). C. monticola is apparently the only widespread species whose distribution range covers the entire Malay Archipelago except the Philippines and Sulawesi. In contrast, the continental C. fuliginosa enters only marginally into the Sunda Shelf: its southernmost record is on the Malay Peninsula. This interpretation is completely different from the classical view that C. fuliginosa is a cosmopolitan species occupying the whole of Southeast Asia. Identification keys, tables of measurements and discriminant functions provided in this work may aid in identification of the various species and subspecies of Crocidura living in the Malaya Archipelago.     

Pre-adaptive shift of a native predator (Araneae, Zodariidae) to an abundant invasive ant species (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)

Invasive species often displace native species and can affect ecological processes in invaded habitats. If invasive species become abundant, changes in prey availability may be particularly harmful to specialist predators. The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile Mayr, is an important invasive species on nearly all continents. Spiders of the genus Zodarion are specialised ant-eating predators native to the Mediterranean yet it is unknown if they can exploit invasive ant species. Here we studied spatial and temporal abundance of this invasive ant and the native spider, Zodarion cesari Pekár, during 4?years in four citrus groves. Circadian activity of both spiders and ants, and capture efficiency and prey specificity of the predator were also evaluated. The abundance of Z. cesari was strongly correlated to L. humile abundance. The predatory activity of spiders varied seasonally with differences on the relative frequency of spiders capturing ants depending on the time of the year. In laboratory, Z. cesari displayed most efficient capture upon the native ant Tapinoma nigerrimum (Nylander) and the invasive ant L. humile in comparison with five other native ant species. These results demonstrate that the native spider Z. cesari is successfully exploiting the invasive ant species L. humile and is likely a locally monophagous predator. We suggest that Z. cesari shifted away from native T. nigerrimum post invasion as both ant species are phylogenetically related and of similar size.     

On fruit eating by Scottish Red grouse

Fruit-eating behaviour of Red grouse was studied in the Grampians of Scotland from analyses of bird droppings for seeds and from direct observations of feeding birds. The commonest moorland species with edible fruits are blaeberry, Vaccinium myrtillus L., cowberry, Vaccinium vitis-idaea L., and crowberry, Empetrum nigrum L.
The fruit-frugivore interaction is not species specific, as grouse ate berries of all the fruiting species, but almost all individuals showed high fruit specificity for one type of fruit. Fruit selection is density-dependent and probably depends on the formation by grouse of a search specific image of the commonest fruit available in the feeding area. This is well known in polyphagous predator-prey interactions in animals but has not so far been reported in animal-plant feeding interactions.
We related fruit selection to both relative fruit abundance and plant cover. Some birds were feeding highly selectively on crowberries which were low in fruit abundance but had high relative cover. This indicated that the fruit resource had been large but had become depleted. Such birds would eventually lose their specific searching image and, following a short period of random search, would form new searching images.
The fruit cues and effect of density dependent selection on the evolution of fruiting behaviour was discussed.