David Luna

Aim To investigate the drivers of intra-specific genetic diversity in centipedes, a group of ancient predatory soil arthropods. Location Asia, Australasia and Europe. Time Period Present. Major Taxa Studied Centipedes (Class: Chilopoda). Methods We assembled a database of 1245 mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I sequences representing 128 centipede species from all five orders of Chilopoda. This sequence dataset was used to estimate genetic diversity for centipede species and compare its distribution with estimates from other arthropod groups. We studied the variation in centipede genetic diversity with species traits and biogeography using a beta regression framework, controlling for the effect of shared evolutionary history within a family. Results A wide variation in genetic diversity across centipede species (0–0.1713) falls towards the higher end of values among arthropods. Overall, 27.57% of the variation in mitochondrial COI genetic diversity in centipedes was explained by a combination of predictors related to life history and biogeography. Genetic diversity decreased with body size and latitudinal position of sampled localities, was greater in species showing maternal care and increased with geographic distance among conspecifics. Main Conclusions Centipedes fall towards the higher end of genetic diversity among arthropods, which may be related to their long evolutionary history and low dispersal ability. In centipedes, the negative association of body size with genetic diversity may be mediated by its influence on local abundance or the influence of ecological strategy on long-term population history. Species with maternal care had higher genetic diversity, which goes against expectations and needs further scrutiny. Hemispheric differences in genetic diversity can be due to historic climatic stability and lower seasonality in the southern hemisphere. Overall, we find that despite the differences in mean genetic diversity among animals, similar processes related to life-history strategy and biogeography are associated with the variation within them.

Pseudoscorpions are arachnids that inhabit all terrestrial ecosystems, and are distributed in the tropical, subtropical, and even circumpolar regions. Paratemnoides nidificator (Balzan, 1888) was originally distributed in the continental zone of South America, but subsequently dispersed to Central and North America and the Caribbean. This species was also recorded in coastal marine environments and forest areas in continental and insular regions. Paratemnoides nidificator is the only cooperatively social pseudoscorpion species recorded in South American. However, its distribution limitations are poorly understood. In this study, we used ecological niche models to investigate this species’ current and future distribution potential. Similarly, we defined range limits and demonstrated the potential species distribution towards the Cerrado and Atlantic Forest biomes in the Brazilian territory in future scenarios of climate change, and land use and land cover changes. The annual mean temperature was the most important variable, suggesting that a physiological limitation prevents P. nidificator from occupying areas with extreme mean temperatures. Furthermore, the loss of vegetation cover and the expansion of agricultural frontiers may reduce the occurrence of P. nidificator in environmentally unstable areas because P. nidificator is sensitive to anthropogenic activities. Therefore, the biological response is the relationship between the tolerance limit of P. nidificator and the predicted amplitude of the factor, which appears to lie in its maximum tolerance range.

Wildlife trade is a major driver of biodiversity loss, yet whilst the impacts of trade in some species are relatively well-known, some taxa, such as many invertebrates are often overlooked. Here we explore global patterns of trade in the arachnids, and detected 1,264 species from 66 families and 371 genera in trade. Trade in these groups exceeds millions of individuals, with 67% coming directly from the wild, and up to 99% of individuals in some genera. For popular taxa, such as tarantulas up to 50% are in trade, including 25% of species described since 2000. CITES only covers 30 (2%) of the species potentially traded. We mapped the percentage and number of species native to each country in trade. To enable sustainable trade, better data on species distributions and better conservation status assessments are needed. The disparity between trade data sources highlights the need to expand monitoring if impacts on wild populations are to be accurately gauged and the impacts of trade minimised. Trade in arachnids includes millions of individuals and over 1264 species, with over 70% of individuals coming from the wild.

Gonyleptoidea, largely restricted to the Neotropics, constitutes the most diverse superfamily of Opiliones and includes the largest and flashiest representatives of this arachnid order. However, the relationships among its main lineages (families and superfamilies) and the timing of their origin are…

Species occurrence records provide the basis for many biodiversity studies. They derive from georeferenced specimens deposited in natural history collections and visual observations, such as those obtained through various mobile applications. Given the rapid increase in availability of such data, th…