Visitor weblog publish: Operation desert: crab and dwarf spider found on sand dunes in army space, Slovakia

Visitor weblog publish by Pavol Purgat

For the primary time in Slovakia, the dwarf spider Walckenaeria stylifrons and crab spider Spiracme mongolica had been found on sand dunes in Záhorie Protected Panorama Space, on  localities that function a army complicated, utilized by the native Slovak military. Furthermore, the spider W. stylifrons was present in a wine-growing area close to the historic city of Modra.

Scientists Pavol Purgat, Dr Peter Gajdoš, Natália Hurajtová, Institute of Panorama Ecology-Slovak Academy of Sciences, Slovakia, and Dr Katarína Krajčovičová, Dr Adrián Purkart, Ľubomír Volnár, College of Pure Sciences-Comenius College in Bratislava, Slovakia have printed their paper, the place they introduce two new spider species for Slovakia, within the open-access journal CheckList, the journal of biodiversity knowledge.

European continental sand dunes, characterised by excessive floor temperature, excessive temperature fluctuations and motion of sand lots, belong to the uncommon, climatically excessive areas resembling deserts. In Europe, lowland sandy grassland habitats are thought-about to be among the many most endangered and are sometimes the topic of nature conservation.

The researchers determined to know the spider assemblages residing in such excessive habitats in Western Slovakia. Throughout 2018–2019, the examine websites had been chosen and co-called pitfall traps hidden within the floor had been used to gather spiders.

Amongst different collected species, two spiders had been discovered for the primary time in Slovakia. The dwarf spider W. stilifrons is recorded from 15 European international locations and it’s identified from Japanese England to Japanese Germany within the north, and from the Iberian Peninsula to the Crimea and Cyprus within the south. Inside Central Europe, the species has up to now been identified from Austria, Germany and Switzerland. The crab spider S. mongolica is thought from Serbia to the European a part of Russia. Its distribution in Asia extends from Central Asian a part of Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan to Mongolia and China. In China it’s identified solely from Western Inside Mongolia and Xinjiang area.

Upon the detailed examination of male copulatory organs, the researchers discovered that one of many species shares characters typical for the genus Spiracme, in consideration of {that a} new mixture Spiracme mongolica for the spider beforehand referred to as Xysticus mongolicus was steered.

In conclusion, the authors assume that W. stilifrons can stay elsewhere in Europe. The rarity of the species could also be associated to the incidence of adults, particularly within the winter months, as most researchers are targeted solely on the rising seasons. The incidence of S. mongolica in sand dunes in Slovakia confirms this species desire for dry habitats. The brand new discovering of S. mongolica is probably the most identified westernmost.

Analysis article:
Purgat P, Gajdoš P, Purkart A, Hurajtová N, Volnár Ľ, Krajčovičová Okay (2021) Walckenaeria stilifrons and Spiracme mongolica (Araneae, Linyphiidae, Thomisidae), two new species to Slovakia. Test Checklist 17 (6): 1601-1608. doi: 10.15560/17.6.1601

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