A new species of Cryptocellus (Arachnida: Ricinulei) from Eastern Amazonia

Abstract

In this paper we describe a new species of Cryptocellus from the Carajás National Forest, the second species found in caves of this region, besides C. tarsilae. The specimens available were collected in superficial caves formed in iron ore in areas of residual plateau, more specifically on the bases of outcrops of iron ore or 'canga'. The 'canga' is usually covered by open vegetation type called 'metalophylic vegetation', which is characterized by plants able to grow in soils rich in iron and other heavy metals. The new species described here does not show any troglomorphism. MATERIAL AND METHODSThe specimens were collected by visual search and manual capture. The general terminology follows PLATNICK & SHADAB (1977), while that of male leg III follows COKENDOLPHER (2000). Measurements were taken according to COOKE & SHADAB (1973) and are given in millimetres (Tab. I). The specimens were covered with clay, and some setae had clay on the apex, giving them the false appearance of being clavate. They were partially cleaned by immersion in water with detergent and exposed to an ultrasound cleaner for about 15 minutes. The type material is deposited in the Museu de Zoologia da Cryptocellus canga sp. nov. ABSTRACT. Cryptocellus canga sp. nov. is described from specimens collected in several caves at Carajás National Forest, Pará, Brazil. The new species differs from other species of the genus by the morphology of copulatory apparatus of the male leg III. A new species of

Unnoticed in the tropics: phylogenomic resolution of the poorly known arachnid order Ricinulei (Arachnida)

“…Despite abundant recent taxonomic work (e.g. [2,3,[5][6][7][8][9][10]), and some phylogenetic and biogeographic studies [11], Ricinulei remains an obscure group, as it was in 1964 when Savory [12] stated that 'the discovery of each new specimen is still something of a zoological triumph'. Seventy-six years ago, Gertsch et al [13] found the first North American Ricinulei and reported that only ca 30 specimens were known for the Americas at the time.…”

“…Ricinulei have remained a neglected and undersampled group of arthropods until the present, and only a few species are known from more than a handful of specimens. In Cryptocellus, three species are still only known by males, six by females only and two only by nymphs [5,6,8,[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21].…”

COI mtDNA barcoding and morphology for the description of a new species of ricinuleid of the genus Pseudocellus (Arachnida: Ricinulei: Ricinoididae) from El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve, Chiapas, Mexico

“…Structures such as the copulatory apparatus of leg III of the male, femur and tibia II of the male, and female spermathecae are robust morphological characters for the identification at the species level. In the case of the accessory piece of the copulatory apparatus , the shape and distal bifurcation seems to be specific for each single species, including the three genera, Pseudocellus, Cryptocellus and Ricinoides (Tuxen 1974;Botero-Trujillo & Pérez 2008Tourinho & Saturnino 2010;Pinto-da-Rocha & Andrade 2012;Botero-Trujillo & Valdez-Mondragón 2016;Botero-Trujillo & Flórez 2017;Botero-Trujillo et al 2021a, 2021b. Additionally, sexual structures are informative at the species level, such as female spermathecae, of which the shape and the number of lobules on each side are diagnostic characters .…”

Eight New Species of Charinus Simon, 1892 (Arachnida: Amblypygi: Charinidae) Endemic for the Brazilian Amazon, with Notes on Their Conservational Status

“…n.. The region where these species inhabits is a hematite mining area and all three were collected inside iron caves in an area called Canga (Brazilian name to isolated inselbergs on tops of mountains in the states of Minas Gerais and Pará, associated with superficial iron crust, characterized by the presence of iron stone and ferricrete soils, similar to the banded iron formations (BIFs) in South-Western Australia; it is also characterized by high local and regional diversity [ 66 , 67 ]), and lots of those caves are being destroyed by one of the largest mining companies of the planet. Therewith, the environment is suffering large alterations [ 68 ].…”