A companion to Part 2 of the World Checklist of Opiliones species (Arachnida): Laniatores – Samooidea, Zalmoxoidea and Grassatores incertae sedis

Abstract

BackgroundA series of databases is being prepared to list the valid species of Opiliones worldwide. This paper containing nomenclatural acts is meant to accompany Part 2, which includes the members of the infraorder Grassatores of the superfamilies Samooidea and Zalmoxoidea plus the Grassatores currently not allocated to any family (i.e. Grassatores incertae sedis).New informationThe following 32 taxonomic changes are proposed here:(1-3) The Afrotropical genera Hovanoceros Lawrence, 1959, Malgaceros Lawrence, 1959 and Tetebius Roewer, 1949 (all currently in Samoidae) are all newly transferred to Biantidae.(4-5) Microminua soerenseni Soares & Soares, 1954, from Brazil is newly transferred to Tibangara (Gonyleptoidea: Cryptogeobiidae), newly combined as Tibangara soerenseni new comb., new familial allocation for the species.(6-7) The new genus Llaguenia Gen. nov is erected for the South American species Zamora peruviana Roewer, 1956, newly combined as Llaguenia peruviana new comb., and newly placed in Gonyleptoidea: Cranaidae (Prostygninae).(8) Bebedoura Roewer, 1949, known from a single Brazilian species, is transferred from Tricommatinae to Grassatores incertae sedis.(9) Microconomma Roewer, 1915, known from a single Cameroonian species, is transferred from Samoidae to Grassatores incertae sedis.(10) Stygnomimus Roewer, 1927, with two Indomalayan species and hitherto included in the Stygnommatidae, is here formally considered Grassatores incertae sedis.(11) Bichito González-Sponga, 1998, known from a single Venezuelan species, originally described in Phalangodidae: Phalangodinae, and currently in Grassatores incertae sedis is transferred to Samoidae.(12) The Neotropical genus Microminua Sørensen, 1932, currently with two species, is newly transferred from Kimulidae to Samoidae.(13-14) Cornigera González-Sponga, 1987 (currently in Samoidae), is newly considered a junior subjective synonym of Microminua, and its single species is combined under Microminua as Microminua flava (González-Sponga, 1987) new comb.(15) Niquitaia González-Sponga, 1999 (originally in Phalangodidae: Phalangodinae, currently in Zalmoxidae), monotypic from Venezuela, is newly transferred to Samoidae.(16) Heteroscotolemon Roewer, 1912 originally described in Phalangodidae: Phalangodinae, and currently in Grassatores incertae sedis is transferred to Zalmoxidae.(17) While the Australasian genus Zalmoxista Roewer, 1949 is currently in Samoidae and some of its former species have been transferred to Zalmoxis Sørensen, 1886, Zalmoxista americana Roewer, 1952 from Peru, is here newly transferred to Zalmoxidae into Minuides Sørensen, 1932, forming the combination Minuides americanus (Roewer, 1952) new comb. (specific name inflected to match the masculine gender).(18) Neobabrius Roewer, 1949 (currently in Phalangodidae), monotypic from Indonesia, is newly transferred to Zalmoxidae.(19) While Crosbyella Roewer, 1927, belongs to Phalangodidae, Crosbyella roraima Goodnight & Goodnight, 1943 (originally Phalangodinae, but currently Zalmoxidae without gener...

A new genus of Zalmoxoidea from Colombia (Arachnida: Opiliones: Grassatores)

“…The Fissiphalliidae possess severe allometry, with both stragulum and rutrum extremely elongate, and all the rest of penis compressed as a short proximal stub (e.g., Martens 1988;Tourinho & Pérez-Gonza´lez 2006). Phalangodella was left in Zalmoxoidea incertae sedis by Kury & Pérez-Gonza´lez (2015). It probably forms an early branch of a clade which would also include Zalmoxidae and Fissiphalliidae: it has a rudimentary proto-pergula (projected distal ring) and proto-rutrum (thick mushroom-shaped apical process), and furthermore the long stragulum retains the primitive condition of being divided into left and right halves (Kury & Pérez-Gonza´lez, 2015).…”

“…Kury et al (2015: 4) warned about the use of potentially “false” members of Icaleptidae: “the accurate familial identification of specimens in those later studies needs to be confirmed using genital characters together with other morphological features”.…”

A stable phylogenomic classification of Travunioidea (Arachnida, Opiliones, Laniatores) based on sequence capture of ultraconserved elements

“…The distinct generic status of Arbasus and Buemarinoa has been doubted (Kury and Mendes 2007). The morphological distinction between Arbasus and Buemarinoa is minimal and entirely based on tarsal segmentation (Kury and Mendes 2007), which is typical of the “Roewerian classification” system that resulted in taxa being over split based on irrelevant characters (e.g., Kury et al 2014, Kury and Pérez-González 2015). Aside from the original descriptions with basic drawings (Roewer 1935, 1956), virtually no taxonomic work has been conducted on Arbasus and Buemarinoa .…”

World Checklist of Opiliones species (Arachnida). Part 2: Laniatores – Samooidea, Zalmoxoidea and Grassatores incertae sedis

“…Two important superfamilies of Grassatores are listed here, along with all species of the infraorder that could not be allocated to any of the known families. Mandatory taxonomic chages are made in a sister paper specifically dedicated to the formalization and documentation of these nomenclatural acts (Kury and Pérez-González 2015. The suborder Laniatores is composed of the so-called "spiny" or "armored" harvestmen, although many members of suborders Eupnoi or Dyspnoi also match this characterization.…”

“…A total of 32 taxonomic changes were proposed in the companion paper to this contribution (Kury and Pérez-González 2015), but a considerable amount of taxa still remain without any suprafamiliar allocation. A total of 59 genera and 81 species are not currently clearly assigned to any one grassatorean family.…”