Systematics of the giant spiny trapdoor spiders of the genus Gaius Rainbow (Mygalomorphae: Idiopidae: Aganippini): documenting an iconic lineage of the Western Australian inland arid zone

Michael G. Rix; Robert J. Raven; Mark S. Harvey

doi:10.1636/JoA-S-17-079.1

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1 November 2018 Systematics of the giant spiny trapdoor spiders of the genus Gaius Rainbow (Mygalomorphae: Idiopidae: Aganippini): documenting an iconic lineage of the Western Australian inland arid zone

Michael G. Rix, Robert J. Raven, Mark S. Harvey

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The J. of Arachnology, 46(3):438-472 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1636/JoA-S-17-079.1

Abstract

The aganippine spiny trapdoor spiders of the genus Gaius Rainbow, 1914 are revised. Seven new species are described from Western Australia: G. aurora sp. nov., G. austini sp. nov., G. cooperi sp. nov., G. hueyi sp. nov., G. humphreysi sp. nov., G. mainae sp. nov. and G. tealei sp. nov. The type species, G. villosus Rainbow, 1914, is re-illustrated and re-diagnosed, and molecular data for six (of eight) species and six genes are analyzed with Bayesian methods. Species of Gaius are iconic denizens of the Western Australian inland arid zone, renowned for their large size and extreme longevity. We here document the known diversity and conservation status of these spiders, and summarize their unusual biology and phenology.

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Michael G. Rix, Robert J. Raven, and Mark S. Harvey "Systematics of the giant spiny trapdoor spiders of the genus Gaius Rainbow (Mygalomorphae: Idiopidae: Aganippini): documenting an iconic lineage of the Western Australian inland arid zone," The Journal of Arachnology 46(3), 438-472, (1 November 2018). https://doi.org/10.1636/JoA-S-17-079.1

Received: 27 September 2017; Published: 1 November 2018

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