1. Systematics and evolutionary history of raft and nursery-web spiders (Araneae: Dolomedidae and Pisauridae)Kuang-Ping Yu, Ren-Chung Cheng, Charles R. Haddad, Akio Tanikawa, Brogan L. Pett, Luis N. Piacentini, Ho Yin Yip, Yuya Suzuki, Arnaud Henrard, Christina J. Painting, Cor J. Vink, Eileen A. Hebets, Mark S. Harvey, Matjaž Kuntner, 2025, complete scientific database of research data Abstract: Pisauridae are a global and heterogeneous assemblage of spider genera with diverse morphologies and lifestyles. So far, the monophyly of Pisauridae and the inclusion of fishing spiders (Dolomedes) in this family have not been thoroughly tested. Here, we amend the systematics and classification of these lineages within a UCE phylogenomic framework and through a detailed morphological reappraisal. For estimations of their evolutionary age, we perform and compare outcomes from two divergence estimation approaches, an a posteriori likelihood, and an a priori Bayesian. Phylogenies reject the monophyly of both Pisauridae and Dolomedes: 1) Focal Clade I groups true Pisauridae genera including Pisaura; 2) Focal Clade II contains Blandinia and is sister to Trechaleidae and Lycosidae; 3) Focal Clade III groups Dolomedes, Megadolomedes, and Ornodolomedes, and is sister to Blandinia, Trechaleidae, and Lycosidae. We therefore propose to delimit Pisauridae by removing Dolomedidae rank resurrected (including Dolomedes, Bradystichus, Megadolomedes, Caledomedes, Mangromedes, Ornodolomedes, and Tasmomedes) and Blandinia incertae sedis. Likelihood and Bayesian time calibration approaches yield comparable divergence estimations: Pisauridae origin is estimated at 29–40 Ma; Blandinia 21–34 Ma; Dolomedidae 10–17 Ma; Dolomedes 9–16 Ma. Reconstructions suggest that the evolution of terrestrial and web-building lifestyles from semi-aquatic ancestors in Pisauridae coincided with cooling and drying climates during the mid-Miocene, but this was not the case in the few recent cases of terrestrialization in Dolomedes species. This historic reconstruction illustrates how climatic changes, or rapid radiation, can drive lifestyle diversification.
Keywords: classification, climate change, divergence time estimation, Dolomedes, fishing spiders, lifestyle evolution, MCMCtree, RelTime
Published in DiRROS: 13.04.2026; Views: 27; Downloads: 16
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2. Osmooka, a new spider genus from Madagascar: a surprising relative of the Australian fauna (Araneae: Paraplectanoididae)Matjaž Kuntner, Kuang-Ping Yu, Matjaž Bedjanič, Matjaž Gregorič, Eva Turk, Klemen Čandek, Jonathan A. Coddington, Ingi Agnarsson, James Starrett, Jason E. Bond, 2025, complete scientific database of research data Abstract: Madagascar is a biodiversity hotspot with high endemism and ancient phylogenetic diversity. We here report the discovery of Osmooka aphana gen. nov., sp. nov. from Marojejy National Park. Phylogenomic analyses place Osmooka as sister to the Australian Paraplectanoides Keyserling, 1886, and this doublet is sister to Nephilidae Simon, 1894. When proposed, Paraplectanoididae Kuntner, Coddington, Agnarsson & Bond, 2023 was exclusively Australian and monogeneric, but was predicted to contain additional, undescribed taxa. The discovery of Osmooka and its phylogenetic placement in Paraplectanoididae supports this prediction. We present a taxonomic treatment of Osmooka and Paraplectanoides, and a reappraisal of Orbipurae morphological homologies. With this new discovery, we revalidate Paraplectanoididae, Nephilidae, and Phonognathidae Simon, 1894, ranks resurrected as exclusive, monophyletic, and well-diagnosed families, whereas Araneidae Clerck, 1757 requires further redefinition. Finally, we test the hypothesis of East Gondwanan vicariant origin of Osmooka and Paraplectanoides. This scenario would predict an ancient age of their ancestor, predating the 130 Ma breakup of Gondwana. Divergence dating refutes this hypothesis by estimating their common ancestor at 57 Ma. Rather than through vicariance, the disjunct distribution of Osmooka and Paraplectanoides is best explained through Cenozoic intercontinental dispersal and/or extinctions. Potential discovery of additional paraplectanoidid diversity might better elucidate the timing, modes, and trajectories of historic dispersal and extinction events.
Keywords: Madagascar, biodiversity, Osmooka aphana gen. nov., sp. nov., Paraplectanoididae, spiders
Published in DiRROS: 23.03.2026; Views: 123; Downloads: 101
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3. The Other Side of the Coin: Taxonomic Updates and Species Key of Herennia (Araneae: Nephilidae)Matjaž Kuntner, Kuang-Ping Yu, Eva Turk, Klemen Čandek, Matjaž Gregorič, Gregory J. Anderson, Jonathan A. Coddington, Ren-Chung Cheng, 2026, original scientific article Abstract: Coin spiders of the genus Herennia Thorell, 1877 are species-rich nephilids distributed across South, East, and Southeast Asia and Australasia. They are notable for ladder-shaped arboricolous webs, extreme sexual size dimorphism, and complex sexual behaviors. The most recent revision recognized 11 species, only 4 of which were described from both sexes. Here, we present a taxonomic revision integrating new morphological and molecular data and recognize 14 species. We describe three new species—H. eva Kuntner from Sulawesi, H. maj Kuntner from Vietnam, and H. tsoi Kuntner et al. from Taiwan—and document previously unknown males of H. oz Kuntner, 2005 from Australia and H. tone Kuntner, 2005 from the Philippines. We also extend the known distribution of H. papuana Thorell, 1881 from New Guinea to Australia. Although several molecular species-delimitation analyses suggest H. oz and H. etruscilla Kuntner, 2005 may be conspecific, consistent and diagnostic morphological differences support their recognition as distinct species. We provide an updated identification key to all valid Herennia species. Additional undescribed endemics are likely to occur across the Asian mainland and the rapidly disappearing forests of Southeast Asian and Australasian islands. The genus’ biogeographic pattern, shaped by an ancestrally broad distribution spanning the Wallace Line, may reflect repeated loss and regain of ballooning, a hypothesis that warrants experimental and comparative testing.
Keywords: orbweb spiders, Araneoidea, taxonomy, Wallace Line, biogeography, vicariance
Published in DiRROS: 16.03.2026; Views: 198; Downloads: 123
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4. Osmooka, a new spider genus from Madagascar : a surprising relative of the Australian fauna (Araneae: Paraplectanoididae)Matjaž Kuntner, Kuang-Ping Yu, Matjaž Bedjanič, Matjaž Gregorič, Eva Turk, Klemen Čandek, Jonathan A. Coddington, Ingi Agnarsson, James Starrett, Jason E. Bond, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Madagascar is a biodiversity hotspot with high endemism and ancient phylogenetic diversity. We here report the discovery of Osmooka aphana gen. nov., sp. nov. from Marojejy National Park. Phylogenomic analyses place Osmooka as sister to the Australian Paraplectanoides Keyserling, 1886 and this doublet is sister to Nephilidae Simon, 1894. When proposed, Paraplectanoididae Kuntner, Coddington, Agnarsson & Bond, 2023 was exclusively Australian and monogeneric, but was predicted to contain additional, undescribed taxa. The discovery of Osmooka and its phylogenetic placement in Paraplectanoididae support this prediction. We present a taxonomic treatment of Osmooka and Paraplectanoides, and a reappraisal of Orbipurae morphological homologies. With this new discovery, we revalidate Paraplectanoididae, Nephilidae, and Phonognathidae Simon, 1894 ranks resurrected as exclusive, monophyletic, and well-diagnosed families, whereas Araneidae Clerck, 1757 requires further redefinition. Finally, we test the hypothesis of East Gondwanan vicariant origin of Osmooka and Paraplectanoides. This scenario would predict an ancient age of their ancestor, predating the 130 Ma breakup of Gondwana. Divergence dating refutes this hypothesis by estimating their common ancestor at 57 Ma. Rather than through vicariance, the disjunct distribution of Osmooka and Paraplectanoides is best explained through Cenozoic intercontinental dispersal and/or extinctions. Potential discovery of additional paraplectanoidid diversity might better elucidate the timing, modes, and trajectories of historic dispersal and extinction events.
Keywords: phylogenomics, classification, palpal homology, arachnology, zoology
Published in DiRROS: 22.01.2026; Views: 369; Downloads: 279
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6. Taxonomy, phylogeny, and size evolution in the spider genus Megaraneus Lawrence, 1968 (Araneae: Araneidae)Klemen Čandek, Eva Turk, Pedro de Souza Castanheira, Kuang-Ping Yu, Matjaž Gregorič, Volker W. Framenau, Ingi Agnarsson, Matjaž Kuntner, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Among terrestrial animals, spiders exhibit the most striking examples of sexual size dimorphism (SSD) but better understanding of its evolution requires improved taxonomy and phylogeny. Many sexually dimorphic spiders lack adequate description, phylogenetic placement, and natural history observations. In South Africa, we documented the natural history of a poorly known spider, Megaraneus gabonensis (Lucas, 1858), with extreme, female-biased SSD (eSSD, female:male approximately 4:1). Here, we redescribe M. gabonensis, place Megaraneus Lawrence, 1968 phylogenetically for the first time, assess whether the observed eSSD represents an independent evolutionary origin, and test whether the macroevolutionary pattern is better explained by male dwarfism or female gigantism. The recovered phylogenetic placement of Megaraneus in the araneid ‘backobourkiines’, a clade previously considered as restricted to East Asia and Australasia, extends the range of this clade to the Afrotropics. We find that eSSD was present in the common ancestor of the ‘backobourkiines’, with further increases in female body length occurring independently in Megaraneus, Backobourkia Framenau, Dupérré, Blackledge & Vink, 2010, and the currently misplaced Parawixia dehaani (Doleschall, 1859). We conclude that the evolution of eSSD reflects a complex pattern of sex-specific size changes across spider phylogeny, but that in Megaraneus it results from female gigantism.
Keywords: sexual size dimorphism, backobourkiines, trait evolution, South Africa
Published in DiRROS: 30.09.2025; Views: 563; Downloads: 256
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7. To mate or to steal food? A male spider’s dilemmaMatjaž Kuntner, Xin Xu, Daiqin Li, 2025, other scientific articles Abstract: We report a sequence of unusual male behaviors observed in Nephila pilipes (Fabricius, 1793) (Araneae: Nephilidae Simon, 1894), a sexually size dimorphic tropical spider species in Singapore. We documented a male suitor using his mouth parts (chelicerae) rather than his copulatory organs (pedipalps) to repeatedly probe female genitals. The behaviors may have served as a strategy to assess the female’s mating status, functioned as a courtship strategy, or, most plausibly, represented an attempt to remove a genital plug. The documented chrono-sequence culminated in the male’s attempted commensalism, followed by an aggressive attack by the female, resulting in near-fatal injury to the male. Notably, the attack did not escalate into cannibalism, suggesting that the extreme size difference in Nephila may render small males unappealing as prey.
Keywords: sexual size dimorphism, eSSD mating syndrome, genital plugging, sexual cannibalism, zoology, ethology
Published in DiRROS: 18.04.2025; Views: 1348; Downloads: 510
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8. Systematics and evolutionary history of raft and nursery-web spiders (Araneae: Dolomedidae and Pisauridae)Kuang-Ping Yu, Ren-Chung Cheng, Charles R. Haddad, Akio Tanikawa, Brogan L. Pett, Luis N. Piacentini, Ho Yin Yip, Yuya Suzuki, Arnaud Henrard, Matjaž Kuntner, 2025, original scientific article Abstract: Pisauridae are a global and heterogeneous assemblage of spider genera with diverse morphologies and lifestyles. So far, the monophyly of Pisauridae and the inclusion of fishing spiders (Dolomedes) in this family have not been thoroughly tested. Here, we amend the systematics and classification of these lineages within a UCE phylogenomic framework and through a detailed morphological reappraisal. For estimations of their evolutionary age, we perform and compare outcomes from two divergence estimation approaches, an a posteriori likelihood, and an a priori Bayesian. Phylogenies reject the monophyly of both Pisauridae and Dolomedes: (1) Focal Clade I groups true Pisauridae genera including Pisaura; (2) Focal Clade II contains Blandinia and is sister to Trechaleidae and Lycosidae; (3) Focal Clade III groups Dolomedes, Megadolomedes, and Ornodolomedes, and is sister to Blandinia, Trechaleidae, and Lycosidae. We therefore propose to delimit Pisauridae by removing Dolomedidae rank resurrected (including Dolomedes, Bradystichus, Megadolomedes, Caledomedes, Mangromedes, Ornodolomedes, and Tasmomedes) and Blandinia incertae sedis. Likelihood and Bayesian time calibration approaches yield comparable divergence estimations: Pisauridae origin is estimated at 29–40Ma; Blandinia 21–34Ma; Dolomedidae 10–17Ma; Dolomedes 9–16Ma. Reconstructions suggest that the evolution of terrestrial and web-building lifestyles from semi-aquatic ancestors in Pisauridae coincided with cooling and drying climates during the mid-Miocene, but this was not the case in the few recent cases of terrestrialization in Dolomedes species. This historic reconstruction illustrates how climatic changes, or rapid radiation, can drive lifestyle diversification.
Keywords: classification, climate change, divergence time estimation, Dolomedes, fishing spiders, lifestyle evolution, MCMCtree, RelTime
Published in DiRROS: 28.03.2025; Views: 899; Downloads: 759
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9. Dolomedes fishing spider biology: gaps and opportunities for future researchKuang-Ping Yu, Zita Roithmair, Jillian Kurovski, Simon J. Connolly, Cor J. Vink, James Chadwick Johnson, Simona Kralj-Fišer, Matjaž Kuntner, Eileen A. Hebets, Christina J. Painting, 2024, review article Abstract: Dolomedes may easily be considered to be among the most charismatic spider taxa. Known colloquially as fishing or raft spiders, this clade of dolomedid cursorial hunters is speciose with about 100 valid species names. Most Dolomedes are large spiders that inhabit water bodies across all continents except Antarctica and, interestingly, South America. Dolomedes have captured the attention of researchers and the public alike for their ability to walk on and submerge under water, fish for prey (including small vertebrates), and for their often-bizarre mating behavior that includes examples of male spontaneous death and sexual cannibalism. In this review, we critically evaluate what is known of Dolomedes biology, focusing on their systematics and morphology, ecology, behavior, and conservation. Given their close association with water, Dolomedes may be particularly vulnerable to the impacts of anthropogenic change and provide an important group of indicator species for understanding the effect of pollution, habitat loss and climate change. We outline a roadmap for future studies that, in our view, will consolidate Dolomedes as an ideal model lineage among spiders for addressing a vast array of questions across multiple fields of biology.
Keywords: raft spiders, behavioral ecology, diversity, physiology, evolution, conservation, Dolomedidae
Published in DiRROS: 28.03.2025; Views: 965; Downloads: 550
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10. A new cave-dwelling hadzioid amphipod (Senticaudata, Hadzioidea, Melitidae) from sulfidic groundwaters in IranMohammad Javad Malek-Hosseini, Traian Brad, Yaser Fatemi, Matjaž Kuntner, Cene Fišer, 2024, original scientific article Keywords: caves, extreme environments, Amphipoda
Published in DiRROS: 10.02.2025; Views: 682; Downloads: 514
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