Open Collections

Review of the genus Mexigonus (Araneae, Salticidae) and description of 59 new species

University of British Columbia

The diversity of jumping spiders in the tribe Euophryini in southern North America is still being described, especially in temperate and cloud forests located at the boundaries between Nearctic and Neotropical regions. A good example of a poorly known genus is Mexigonus, with only five species described. The phylogenetic placement of Mexigonus as the genus sister to Pensacola and the existence of many undescribed species provide the opportunity to review the taxonomy of the genus and its diagnosis. We performed two expeditions and borrowed material from collections to describe 59 new species and create eight new combinations. We complement our findings with photographs of type material, illustrations of the genitalia and distribution maps. The diagnosis provided by Edwards (2003) is useful to diagnose the genus at higher latitudes than the Trans Mexican Volcanic Belt. Mexigonus is distributed in all the major mountain chains of Mexico and its distribution goes from Sierra Nevada, USA, to Costa Rica, from elevations starting at 50 m to almost 4,000 m. Mexigonus shows a wide range of body shapes, with males often having striking patterns of face and leg ornamentations used during courtship.

Text

2021-04-13

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/77748

Zoology

University of British Columbia

UBCV

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/