Draculoides Explained
Draculoides is a genus of troglobite schizomid arachnids endemic to North West Australia. Often mistaken for spiders, they are commonly known as short-tailed whip-scorpions or sprickets.[1]
Description
Schizomids are small, soil-dwelling, eight-legged invertebrates that walk on six legs and use the two modified front legs as feelers. They employ large fang-like pedipalps, or pincers, to grasp invertebrate prey and crunch it into pieces before sucking out the juices.
Taxonomy
The genus was first described in 1992 by Mark Harvey of the Western Australian Museum,[2] based on his earlier description of Schizomus vinei (Draculoides vinei).[3]
A second species was described in 1995, Draculoides bramstokeri, based on specimens found at Barrow Island; the specific epithet honours Bram Stoker, the author of Dracula.[4] The allusion to this fictional character, a vampire, in the name of the genus is given for the method of consuming its prey, and further allusions to vampirism appear in the epithets of subsequently described species.
The genus is considered a senior synonym of Paradraculoides, due to paraphyly and a lack of consistent morphological differences.[5]
Species
, the World Arachnida Catalog accepted the following species:[6]
- Draculoides affinis (Framenau, Hamilton, Finston, Humphreys, Abrams, Huey & Harvey, 2018)
- Draculoides akashae Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides anachoretus (Harvey, Berry, Edward & Humphreys, 2008)
- Draculoides belalugosii Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides bramstokeri Harvey & Humphreys, 1995
- Draculoides brooksi Harvey, 2001
- Draculoides bythius (Harvey, Berry, Edward & Humphreys, 2008)
- Draculoides carmillae Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides catho (Framenau, Hamilton, Finston, Humphreys, Abrams, Huey & Harvey, 2018)
- Draculoides celatus (Framenau, Hamilton, Finston, Humphreys, Abrams, Huey & Harvey, 2018)
- Draculoides christopherleei Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides claudiae Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides cochranus (Framenau, Hamilton, Finston, Humphreys, Abrams, Huey & Harvey, 2018)
- Draculoides confusus (Framenau, Hamilton, Finston, Humphreys, Abrams, Huey & Harvey, 2018)
- Draculoides eremius (Abrams & Harvey, 2015)
- Draculoides gnophicola (Harvey, Berry, Edward & Humphreys, 2008)
- Draculoides immortalis Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides julianneae Harvey, 2001
- Draculoides karenbassettae Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides kryptus (Harvey, Berry, Edward & Humphreys, 2008)
- Draculoides mckechnieorum Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides mesozeirus Harvey, Berry, Edward & Humphreys, 2008
- Draculoides minae Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides neoanthropus Harvey, Berry, Edward & Humphreys, 2008
- Draculoides noctigrassator Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides nosferatu Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides obrutus (Framenau, Hamilton, Finston, Humphreys, Abrams, Huey & Harvey, 2018)
- Draculoides piscivultus Abrams & Harvey, 2020
- Draculoides trinity (Framenau, Hamilton, Finston, Humphreys, Abrams, Huey & Harvey, 2018)
- Draculoides vinei (Harvey, 1988)
- Draculoides warramboo Abrams & Harvey, 2020
See also
Further reading
- Book: Burbidge, Andrew A . Threatened animals of Western Australia . 2004 . Department of Conservation and Land Management . 0-7307-5549-5 . 9. Invertebrates . The North West Cape Karst Management Advisory Committee coordinates the conservation of threatened animals on the North West Cape peninsula.. 151.
Notes and References
- Web site: Researchers count 13 new species of fanged arachnids in the Pilbara. . 2020-10-28. Western Australian Museum . WAM . 2023-09-23.
- Draculoides Harvey, M. S. 1992. The Schizomida (Chelicerata) of Australia. Invertebrate Taxonomy 6: 77–129 [82].
- Harvey, M. S. 1988. A new troglobitic schizomid from Cape Range, Western Australia (Chelicerata: Schizomida). Records of the Western Australian Museum 14: 15–20 [16].
- Harvey, M. S. & Humphreys, W. F. 1995. Notes on the genus Draculoides Harvey (Schizomida: Hubbardiidae), with the description of a new troglobitic species. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 52: 183–189 [185].
- Abrams . K. M. . Huey . J. A. . Hillyer . M. J. . Humphreys . W. F. . Didham . R. K. . Harvey . M. S. . 2019 . Too hot to handle: Cenozoic aridification drives multiple independent incursions of Schizomida (Hubbardiidae) into hypogean environments . Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution . 139 . 1–12 . 10.1016/j.ympev.2019.106532. 31185297 . 186205296 .
- Web site: Genus: Draculoides Harvey, 1992 . 2023-09-20 . World Arachnida Catalog . Natural History Museum Bern.
