Francesco Ballarin

Tokyo Metropolitan University | TMU · Department of Biological Sciences

Spiders (Arachnida, Araneae) are a widespread group of generalist predators, principally feeding on insects. Among them, the crab spiders of the family Thomisidae Sundevall, 1833 are ambush predators, generally living on the ground or on plants, especially on their flowers. Previous studies have largely overlooked tri-trophic networks between spide...

Aim Quantifying the relative contribution of environmental filtering versus limiting similarity in shaping communities is challenging because these processes often act simultaneously and their effect is scale‐dependent. Focusing on caves, island‐like natural laboratories with limited environmental variability and species diversity, we tested: (i) t...

The dwarf-mantid genus Holaptilon Beier, 1964 is composed of small-sized ground-runner species distributed in the Middle East. Due to their elusive lifestyle, little is known about their behaviour, distribution, and phylogeny. The genus Holaptilon was once established for a single species, H. pusillulum Beier, 1964, based on material collected in J...

Invasive non-native species are recognized as a serious threat to the native biodiversity of the areas they colonize. The subterranean spider Howaia mogera (Yaginuma 1972) (syn. Nesticella mogera) is considered a highly invasive non-native species rapidly expanding its geographical range from Asia across the European continent and to remote oceanic...

Relationships among spider families that lack support through other lines of evidence (e.g., morphology) have recently been uncovered through molecular phylogenetics. One such group is the "marronoid" clade, which contains about 3,400 described species in 9 families. Marronoids run the gamut of life history strategies , with social species, species...

Updated non-native distributional data of the invasive spider Eidmannella pallida (Emerton, 1875), Nesticidae, are herein summarized together with the morphological characters of the species. We report all the known localities from the literature. Furthermore, we present and discuss recent findings for the Italian peninsula. In particular, the spec...

The Japanese species of the genera Nesticella Lehtinen & Saaristo, 1980 and Howaia Lehtinen & Saaristo, 1980 (Araneae, Nesticidae, Nesticellini) are revised using an integrative taxonomic approach. Their morphology, phylogenetic position within the genera, assignment to species groups, and distribution in mainland Japan and the Ryukyu islands are d...

The biology and distribution patterns of the Sahelian mantid species Nilomantis floweri are still insufficiently known. For the first time, records are confirmed of this species from Iran and the distribution map of its native range is updated. Records are compiled from the Sahel zone of North Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and Iran. Detailed infor...

Nearly a decade after its entry into force, the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) continues to pose challenges for academics. The diversity of local regulations and the complexity of procedures can make it difficult for researchers to understand how to properly comply with the protocol when working with samples collected in signatory...

Marine-terrestrial transition represents an important aspect of organismal evolution that requires numerous morphological and genetic innovations and has been hypothesized to be caused by geological changes. We used talitrid crustaceans with marine-coastal-montane extant species at a global scale to investigate the marine origination and terrestria...

Baiyuerius gen. nov., a new genus of the subfamily Coelotinae F. O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1893 is described, including five new species: B. daxi sp. nov. (♀), B. pindong sp. nov. (♂), B. tamdao sp. nov. (♀), B. zhuping sp. nov. (♂) and B. zuojiang sp. nov. (♂♀), from southern China and northern Vietnam. Our molecular phylogenetic analyses support Baiy...

Understanding how species assemble into communities is a central tenet in ecology. One of the most elusive questions is the relative contribution of environmental filtering versus limiting similarity. Important advances in this area have been achieved by looking at communities through a functional lens (i.e., the traits they express), so as to deri...

The species belonging to the family Leptonetidae living in the Ryukyu Archipelago, Southwestern Japan, are herein discussed. Two species, Longileptoneta yamasakii sp. nov. and Masirana suzukii sp. nov., are described as new to science on the basis of both male and female. The new species were collected in caves in Yonaguni-jima Is. and Okinawa-hont...

We report on the unexpected finding of a new species of the genus Cybaeopsis Strand, 1907, C. lodovicii sp. nov. from the Northern Apennine Mountains in Italy. This is the first documented record of a Cybaeopsis species in Europe. Other currently known species of this genus have been previously recorded in North America, the Russian Far-East and Ja...

A new species, Tekellina araucana sp. n., is described from from Chile and Argentina. Detailed morphological data from the spinnerets and male palp of T. araucana sp. n. and Tekellina sadamotoi Yoshida & Ogata, 2016 is provided. A new diagnostic character of Tekellina Levi, 1957, a row of bottle-like modified setae between the anal tubercle and the...

The species Masirana glabra (Komatsu 1957) is redescribed based on fresh specimens collected in the type locality, 65 years after its original description. The female is recorded and described for the first time. Habitus and genitalia of both sexes are illustrated in detail and the DNA barcode of the species is provided. Additional notes on the eco...

Under NBRP (National Bioresource Project), TMU-Makino ABS Support Team will conduct: (1) Survey of the conditions of ABS in donor countries; (2) Survey of the conditions of ABS in the user countries; (3) Support for researchers to acquire genetic resources; (4) Training of researchers familiar with ABS in Japan and foreign countries; (5) Prom...

Several adults of the alien millipede Chamberlinius hualienensis Wang, 1956, a pest introduced from Taiwan, were discovered on October 16, 2021 at the Tama Zoological Park, Tama Area, Tokyo, Japan. This is the first known record of C. hualienensis from mainland Tokyo. Species identification was primarily conducted by examining morphological diagnos...

The genus Palliduphantes Saaristo & Tanasevitch, 2001 is revised in the fauna of Italy. For each species, all known localities , new records, and remarks are provided. A synonymy of P. garganicus (Caporiacco, 1951) with P. istrianus (Kulczyński, 1914) syn. n. is proposed on the basis of a morphological comparison. Two new species, P. murphyi sp. n....

Species traits are an essential currency in ecology, evolution, biogeography, and conservation biology. However, trait databases are unavailable for most organisms, especially those living in difficult-to- access habitats such as caves and other subterranean ecosystems. We compiled an expert-curated trait database for subterranean spiders in Europe...

We explore the population of the troglophilic harvestman Ischyropsalis ravasinii inhabiting the Buso del Valon ice cave located in the Italian Prealps. Spatial and temporal distributions of the specimens are investigated in relation to the variation of environmental abiotic conditions in the cave, such as the seasonal temperature and substrate surf...

A new genus, Daginesticus gen.n. with the type species, D. dzhamirzoevi sp.n. (♂♀) is described from the Caucasus based on morphological and molecular evidences. Three new combinations are proposed: Daginesticus mamajevae (Marusik, 1987) comb.n., Aituaria borutzkyi (Reimoser, 1930) comb.n. and Aituaria eriashvilii (Marusik, 1987) comb.n. (all ex. C...

The litter-dwelling spider fauna from two urban parks in the city of Verona is herein analyzed. A total of 46 species were collected, most of which are generalist and characterized by a wide distribution. Nevertheless, some endemic or rare species were also found, including a new record for the Veneto Region. A remarkable difference in species comp...

High-altitude spiders (Arachnida: Araneae) of the Brenta Dolomites. This study aims to improve our knowledge on the spider fauna (Arachnida: Araneae) living in high-altitude habitats of the Brenta Dolomites (Adamello Brenta Natural Park, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy). Spider specimens were sampled using pitfall traps placed along an altitudinal gradi...

Five new species of the genus Macrothele Ausserer, 1871 are described from China: Macrothele emei Lin & Li, sp. nov. (♂♀, Sichuan), M. hanfeii Lin & Li, sp. nov. (♂♀, Hainan), M. hungae Lin & Li, sp. nov. (♂♀, Taiwan), M. limenghuai Lin & Li, sp. nov. (♂♀, Sichuan), and M. nanning Lin & Li, sp. nov. (♂♀, Guangxi). Types of the new species are depos...

Representatives of some poorly known spider species collected in the rainforest litter of the Orchid Island (Taiwan) are illustrated and discussed here. A new species, Brignoliella tao sp. nov. (Fam. Tetrablemmidae), endemic to Orchid Island, is described based on both sexes. The previously unknown female of Theridiosoma triumphale Zhao & Li, 2012...

A new monospecific genus belonging to the family Linyphiidae Blackwell, 1859, Nihonella gen. nov., is described using an integrative taxonomic approach based on the species N. chika gen. et sp. nov. The new genus is endemic to Western Honshu, Japan, and it shows distinctive genitalic and somatic characters of other genera of the subfamily Erigonina...

We report the first record of the wolf spider Draposa lyrivulva (Bösenberg & Strand 1906) outside its known distribution in Pakistan, India and the island of Sri Lanka on the remote tropical islands of the Maldives. It is the first species report of any Lycosidae from these islands. As this remote archipelago in the Indian Ocean lies about 500 km o...

The arachnological collections of the Museo Civico di Storia Naturale of Verona, Italy, contains roughly 20000 vials, including approximately 2000 species of Araneae and other Arachnida from all over the world. Within the collection, type material represents an important proportion with a count of more than 373 type series. All samples are distribu...

The troglophilic spider subspecies Nesticus latiscapus kosodensis Yaginuma, 1972 is compared with its nominal species N. latiscapus Yaginuma, 1972 using an integrated taxonomic approach. Both morphological and molecular analysis suggest the two taxa are distinct, rejecting the status of subspecies. In the light of these results, N. kosodensis stat....

Three new species of the genus Centromerus from Italy, C. tongiorgii sp. nov., C. hanseni sp. nov., and C. gatoi sp. nov., are described for the first time on the basis of both male and female specimens. Their relationships with other congeneric species, as well as their diagnoses, are discussed using morphological characters. New records of poorly...

Seven species from the spider family Nesticidae are currently known for the Italian fauna. Three Italian nesticids belong to the newly-established genus Domitius Ribera, 2018. All these species show a restricted distribution along the Apen-nine mountain chain and deep adaptation to cave life. Herein, a fourth species, D. culsu sp. nov. from a singl...

Riassunto-il detrito roccioso posto sulla superficie dei ghiacciai è in grado di ospitare una biodiversità, sia animale che vegetale, che include specie microterme a rischio di estinzione nello scenario attuale di riscaldamento climatico globale. Gli ambienti glaciali delle Alpi orientali, dominati da substrato carbonatico, non sono mai stati studi...

Xysticus alpinus Kulczyński, 1887 stat. n. from Central-Eastern Alps, previously considered a subspecies of X. lanio C. L. Koch, 1835, is analyzed in detail. Redescription of both sexes and illustrations of habitus and genitalia are provided. A careful comparison with the nominal species is carried out revealing clear differences in morphology and...

The Museo Civico di Storia Naturale of Verona (Italy) houses unique zoological collections of invertebrates. Among them the arachnological collections represent an excellence, boasting thousands of specimens and hundreds of species of arachnids (mostly spiders) from all over the world. Within the stored samples, types represents a conspicuous and c...

Morphological descriptions of P. proxima (C. L. Koch, 1847) (= P. vlijmi den Hollander & Dijkstra, 1974, syn. nov.) and its sister species P. tenuipes L. Koch, 1882 (= P. proxima auct.), a pair of species hardly distinguishable on a morphological basis but easily separable through behavioural characters, are given. The identification on an ethologi...

1. Patterns of species richness and species assemblage composition of ground-dwelling arthropods in primary successions along glacier forelands are traditionally described using a taxonomic approach. On the other hand, the functional trait approach could ensure a better characterisation of their colonisation strategies in these types of habitat. 2...

A new species of the genus Amaurobius C.L. Koch, 1837, Amaurobius pesarinii sp. n., from the Apennine Mountains (Italy) is described on the basis of both sexes. The male of A. pavesii Pesarini, 1991, previously unknown, is also described. Females of A. pavesii and both sexes of the similar A. scopolii Thorell, 1871 are re-described. Detailed descri...

Active rock glaciers are periglacial landforms consisting of coarse debris with interstitial ice or ice-core. Recent studies showed that such landforms are able to support plant and arthropod life and could act as warm-stage refugia for cold-adapted species due to their microclimate features and thermal inertia. However, integrated research compari...

Forty-three new species of Nesticidae are described from China, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Madagascar, and two new junior synonyms are suggested. A new genus, Spele- oticus gen. n., is described with Nesticus navicellatus Liu & Li, 2013 as the type species, and four species are transferfed from Nesticus, i.e., Speleo...