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Liturgy has often served as a source for studying the identities of medieval religious
communities through examining local saints and special chants or ceremonies. This article
deepens such approaches by considering the practice of liturgical coordination, which
required each convent to reconcile the obligations imposed upon it by the order to
which it belonged, the diocese in which it lay, and the personal networks of its sisters.
The shifting dates of the Easter cycle created a wide variety of possible calendrical conflicts
and necessitated that each convent’s liturgical practice be organized anew every year.
Focusing on German-language liturgical manuals from Observant Dominican convents,
this article introduces these sources and examines the various obligations, authorities,
and sources of advice that Dominican sisters coordinated when planning each year’s
liturgy. It then turns to the concrete example of a major calendrical conflict on May 1,
1519, which illustrates how convents negotiated their networked obligations and defended
their decisions. Supplementing traditional sources such as chronicles and charters,
liturgical administrative documents reveal how each convent’s liturgical identity was
both iterative and networked and how the tensions between these features opened up
spaces for assertive decision-making.
The mite species Barbutia arasbaraniensis Mohammad-Doustaresharaf & Bagheri, 2021, until now only known from four specimens from Iran, was discovered in epilithic crustose lichen on the Königstuhl mountain in Heidelberg in Germany. It is designated as the type species of the new taxon Albertibarbutia gen. nov. Based on the new collection material, a supplementary description of the species is provided and facets of its taxonomy and morphology are discussed. The homologies of the setae and solenidia of both the legs and the pedipalps of Albertibarbutia are indicated. The family
Barbutiidae Robaux, 1975 is rediagnosed, its phylogenetic relationships are commented on and it is here recorded for Germany for the first time.
The mite species Scolotydaeus tauricus, so far only known from Yalta on the Crimean Peninsula, was found in a leprose crustose lichen on the mountain Königstuhl in Heidelberg. This is the first record of the family Paratydeidae for Germany. The adult, larva and nymphs of the Scolotydaeus from Heidelberg are described. The juvenile stages of Scolotydaeus tauricus are up to now unknown. Aspects of the taxonomy, morphology and ecology of this species are discussed.
Flirting with the forbidden?
(2020)
In an oft-quoted section of his Apology, written in 1125 at the request of his friend William of St Thierry, Bernard of Clairvaux mounts a strenous attack on Cluniae excesses in food, clothing, and buildings, ridiculing his rival order's large churches and their sumptuous paintings that catch the worshipper's eye and, as Bernard laments, dry up his devotion. Fiant haec ad honorem Dei - 'You might say', Bernard concedes, if only as a rhetorical gesture, 'these things are all to the honour of God; nevertheless, just as the pagan poet Persius inquired of his fellow pagans, I as a monk ask my fellow monks: "Tell me, oh pontiffs (as he said), what is gold doing in the sanctuary?" I say (folowwing the meaning, not the meter): "Tell me, poor men, if you really are poor: what is gold doing in the sanctuary?" - in sancto quid facit aurum?'
Collection records for Baden-Württemberg in Germany
are provided for seven rare oribatid mite species, five
of which are so far unknown from this federal state. The
species Camisia biverrucata (C. L. Koch, 1840), Microzetorchestes
emeryi (Coggi, 1898), Neoliodes theleproctus
(Hermann, 1804), Parhypochthonius aphidinus
Berlese, 1904 and Scapheremaeus palustris (Sellnick,
1924) were discovered in sites in Mannheim. Camisia
invenusta (Michael, 1888) and Licnobelba latiflabellata
(Paoli, 1908) originate from the Königstuhl mountain
near Heidelberg. Camisia invenusta is recorded for the
first time in Germany.
The Gelechiidae of the SMNK were curated and rearranged
in a main collection: approximately 35,000
specimens of more than 800 species have been arranged
in 91 drawers. This is the result of the integration
of several separate collections as well as unsorted
specimens. With 125 primary types (holotypes and
lectotypes) and a considerable number of specimens
from poorly studied regions, the Gelechiidae collection
of the SMNK is one of the most species-rich collections
of this family worldwide. The material from the collection
is frequently used in recent taxonomic revisions
of Gelechiidae. The history of the collection is briefly
discussed.
Heidelberg (SW Germany) became famous for the
discovery of the lower jaw of Homo heidelbergensis
in October 1907 (Schoetensack 1908). Until the termination
of the extractions in 1962 the sand pit yielded
a rich and diverse mammalian faunal assemblage. In
2007 and the following years new preparation activities
connected to the celebrations of the centenary of
the hominid lower jaw discovery of H. heidelbergensis
produced samples of sediment (medium gravel to fine
pebble) in which at least two isolated lower cheek teeth
of macaques have been found. The finds demonstrate
the presence of Macaca sylvanus in the Mauer faunal
assemblage and represent the occurrence of a second
primate species in this Pleistocene hominid site.
At the Badische Landesbibliothek Karlsruhe (BLB) we offer a variety of e-resources
with different access requirements. On the one hand, there is free access to open
access material, no matter where you are. On the other hand, there are e-resources
that you can only access when you are in the rooms of the BLB. We also offer eresources
that you can access from anywhere, but you must have a library account
for authentication to gain access. To test the functionality of these access methods,
we have created a project to automatically test the entire process from searching our
catalogue, selecting a hit, logging in to the provider’s site and checking the results.
For this we use the End 2 End Testing Framework CodeceptJS.
Belba sculpta was found in a xerothermic habitat on
late Pleistocene aeolian sand deposits in the Dossenwald
near Mannheim in Southern Germany. This oribatid
mite species is so far unknown from Central Europe.
The taxon is redescribed on the basis of the new material,
and the larva and nymphs are documented for
the first time. Aspects of the taxonomy, evolutionary systematics
and ecology of Belba sculpta are discussed.
The Belba sculpta species group is introduced.
A sketch of the lichen vegetation of the Haarwegskloof
Renosterveld Reserve near Bredasdorp (Western
Cape, South Africa) is presented. This reserve is a representative
example of renosterveld vegetation, which
replaces the better known fynbos in relatively dry regions
on more fertile, clay- and shale-based soils. Our
sketch is a first attempt to characterize the lichen biota
of a renosterveld area. The rather low number of 76 encountered
species reflects the absence of aged trees
and large rock formations and occasional bushfires.
However, the significance of the species is great because
most have very restricted distributions in southern
Africa. Among the epiphytic lichens Physciaceae and
Xanthoria-relatives prevail, while on soil and on rock
the genus Xanthoparmelia is by far the most important,
with 22 species, among them several endemics.
Tokukobelba is proposed as a new genus in the oribatid
mite family Damaeidae Berlese, 1896. The species
Tokukobelba compta (Kulczyński, 1902) comb.
nov. is redescribed based on specimens collected in
Heidelberg in Germany. The distinguishing traits of
Tokukobelba, which include the presence of prodorsal
apophyses Aa and Ap, the occurrence of only 2 setae
on femur IV, and a solenidion coupled with the dorsal
seta d on the tibiae of legs I-IV are most unusual for a
damaeid mite. The taxonomy and evolutionary systematics
of the new genus are discussed. Evidence from
comparative morphology suggests a basal position of
Tokukobelba within its family.
Heteroptera of Lebanon
(2014)
Atractotomus riegeri sp. nov. from North Lebanon, where it was collected on Abies cilicica in two different localities, is described and illustrated. The new species is easily separated from all other Palaearctic Atractotomus by the unique shape of its second antennal segment, regularly and remarkably infated in both sexes. A key to the males of Palaearctic Atractotomus, partly based on that by Stonedahl (1990), has been provided in order to facilitate the recognition of the species.
Orthotylus (Pachylops) neoriegeri sp. n. is described from Morocco (South Anti-Atlas). Colour dorsal habitus and illustrations of male and female genitalia are provided. The specimens were collected by beating Cytisus balansae (Fabaceae). Based on the pilosity, the male genitalia and the host-plant association, the new species is placed in the subgenus Pachylops Fieber, 1858.
It differs from the other species mainly by the brown coloration and the phallic sclerotized appendages of the male. Host-plant association within the subgenus Pachylops is briefy discussed.
One new species, Holhymenia riegeri nov. spec., is described from Bolivia and Ecuador. Holhymenia intermedia (Burmeister,1835) and H. tibialis Breddin, 1904, are considered junior synonyms of H. clavigera (Herbst, 1784); new records of H. histrio (Fabricius, 1803), H. persimilis Breddin, 1903, H. rubiginosa Breddin, 1904, and H. scenica (Stål, 1865) are given; a key to all known species is included.
Alien Heteroptera in Belgium
(2014)
Three new Geotomine species of the genus Paraethus Lis, 1994, have been discovered in the collection of the Muséum national d’Histoire Naturelle (Paris). Description of these species, Paraethus riegeri n. sp. and P. raunoi n. sp. from Africa and P. lisi n. sp. from Australia are given with illustration of male and female genitalia. The African species Aethus seyidiensis Jeannel, 1913, is transferred to Paraethus. New localities are given for this species. Additional generic characters are given for
Paraethus as well as a key to species of the genus.
A new species of Tingis (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Tingidae) is described from the Spanish provinces of Valencia, Alicante, Murcia and Almería (southeastern Iberian Peninsula). Tingis (Tropidocheila) christianriegeri n. sp. is very similar to T. alberensis Péricart, 1979, and also seems to depend on plants of the genus Sideritis. However, it is easily distinguished by its dorsal setae, besides differences in distribution and, presumably, plant host species.
The lectotype of Calliphara bipunctata Lehmann, 1920 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Scutelleridae: Scutellerinae), described from the Obi Islands of Indonesia, has been reexamined. The following synonymy is proposed: Calliphara caesar (Vollenhoven, 1863) = C. bipunctata Lehmann, 1920, new junior subjective synonym.
After almost 85 years of palynological research, an impressive amount of pollen diagrams from the Vosges Mountains (NE France) is available. This paper presents an overview of these pollen diagrams and lists their main features and literature sources within a historical context. Furthermore, a short summary is provided on the natural and cultural context.
The authors describe Adpiasus riegeri sp. nov. (Insecta, Heteroptera, Miridae, Mirini), a new species of the genus from French Guyana. It is compared with the three existing species of the genus Adpiasus Carvalo & Schaffner, 1973, A. punctatus Carvalho & Schaffner, 1973, and A. mayanus Carvalho & Schaffner, 1973, from Mexico, as well as A. ecuadorianus Carvalho &
Carpintero, 1986, from Ecuador. The characteristic features of the new species are described in detail and illustrated by photographs. Adpiasus mayanus is recorded for the frst time from French Guyana.
Additional information on the distribution of eleven species of stilt bugs (Heteroptera, Berytidae) from the Afrotropical region is reported and discussed with respect to the major biomes of Africa. For some species, remarks on ecology, identifcation and taxonomy are included. New country records are indicated for Gampsoacantha pumilio, Gampsocoris africanus cornutus, Micrometacanthus trichoferus, Cametanthus madagascariensis, Metacanthus microphthalmus, M. mollis, M. nitidus,
Neostusakia picticornis and Yemma gracilis.
An inclusion in Miocene Dominican amber contained a well preserved velvety shore bug (Ochteridae), Riegerochterus baehri gen. nov., spec. nov., which is described and figured in this article. This is the first fossil representative of the family recorded from Cenozoic, as all previously described taxa are much older, e.g. from the Early Jurassic of England and the Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous of China. It is distinguished from all extant genera of Ochteridae by several distinct characters that are shortly discussed. Figures and photos of representatives of fossil (Riegerochterus) and recent (Megochterus, Ochterus and Ocyochterus) genera are provided.
Erysiphe platani
(2012)
This work deals in two sections with the North American plane powdery mildew Erysiphe platani, an epidemiological study and a molecular phylogenetic analysis based on rDNA ITS sequence data. Most likely, the species was introduced in South Europe at the beginning of the 1960s. In 2007, it was observed for the frst time in Germany near Freiburg (SW Germany) and obviously did not reach other German states until 2009. A detailed monitoring from 2009 to 2011 shows that the fungus continually spread north- and northeastward with a speed of roughly 190 km/year. The northernmost record is from Arendsee in the north of Sachsen-Anhalt from 2011. We assume that the species has come from the Rhone valley and the Burgundian Gate fnally entering Germany in the Upper Rhine plain. The molecular phylogenetic analyses of material of different geographic origins indicate that specimens from Germany and Italy are identical, differ slightly from those from Greece and strongly from extraeuropean (Australia, USA) material. This might indicate a considerable rate of mutation of this powdery mildew with North American origin in the new European area. In addition, the phylogenetic analyses confrm that E. platani is related to other tree-inhabiting powdery mildew species previously accommodated in the genus Microsphaera.
The new genus and species Deltopyxis triangulispora is described. It is so far known from 14 sites in the south of Luxembourg and one in the neighbouring region of France. The discomycete forms very small, blackish-brown apothecia on bark, more rarely on wood, but particularly on more or less strongly senescent hymenia of Vuilleminia spp. The apothecia occur on dead, corticated, internally very slightly to rather strongly white-rotten, attached or broken, periodically dry branches at a height of about 1–3 m above ground. In most of the collections Vuilleminia was present and covered the
bast on one side of the branch, while the periderm still covered the remaining areas. D. triangulispora is so far recorded on angiosperm shrubs of the genera Corylus, Crataegus, Ilex, Prunus, and Salix, which had an advanced age or were already dead. The species prefers undisturbed, usually thermophilous hedges or open woodlands, especially close to their edges, but sometimes occurs also in dense, more air-humid woods. The fungus is characterized by 64-spored, elongate saccate, short-stalked, inamyloid, rather thin-walled asci which arise from croziers and open at the apex by a broad slit-like pore. The hyaline ascospores have a distinctly triangular shape when seen in profile view, but look slightly flattened, (ellipsoid-)deltoid in front view. In the living ascus they are arranged in a dense elongate cluster, which is forcibly discharged as one entity.
The position of Deltopyxis within the Ascomycota is unknown.
„Semper Apertus“
(2012)
On 5 August 1947, two years after the occupying American army had shut it down, the University of Heidelberg recognized Prälat Hermann Ludwig Maas (1877–1970) on his seventieth birthday with a doctorate honoris causa. The document which the Rektor, Prof. Hans Freiherr von Campenhausen, presented to Maas supported the honor with half a dozen reasons why he was worthy of the title Doktor, but the laudatio made no mention of the university’s debt to Hermann Maas that arose in the summer of 1945. Years later, when Maas was a walking, living legend in his own city, the popular press remembered that Maas and members of the Theological Faculty taught uninterruptedly during the Summer Semester of 1945 while other faculties
slumbered. Maas and his colleagues helped the university live up to its heralded motto: semper apertus.
Donaueschinger Wappenbuch
(2012)
A number of german late medieval armorials belong to the Bodensee group, named after their
region of manufacture. Strictly speaking, they do not make up a series of copies, but they share a
number of features. All include many marker coats-of-arms, i.e. combinations of legends and
figures-of-arms unlikely to have been invented independently. Some are curious mistakes of actual
arms, but most belong to the imaginary arms attributed to non-christian realms or to names from
literature. Some armorials include segments of ternionen (three best of each), notably the Nine
Worthies, quaternionen (the Pillars of the Empire), and / or organize parts of the german nobility by
their membership of tournament societies. Woodblocks were used for prestamping the outlines of
shields, helmets and manteling, and several were reused for different armorials. It is likely that part
of the sources used wasere older collations owned by or readily accessible to the artisans
responsible. Except for short fragments copying was rarely used, but pick-and-mix would be the
favoured approach, though by which guiding principles still need to b e clarified.
In the upper Danube river-system, but also in some more watercourses of the German lower mountains range, an endolithic filamentous cyanobacterium is a prominent compound of the phytobenthos. These filaments penetrate limestones in the river bed and form brush-like endolithic layers of about 0.5 mm in depth. There are similarities between this taxon and approximately 10 other filamentous Cyanophyceae in terms of the width of the trichomes, the geometry of the cells and the shape of the apical cells. However, none of these species allow for a direct and clear-cut identification, and a precise taxonomic determination has therefore been unresolved until today. In order to make progress in this matter, it is necessary to get a better insight into the boring behaviour of this inhabitant and into the endolithic arrangements of the filaments. For
this purpose, special preparation methods and SEM examinations were applied. The results of these procedures as well as critical comparisons with taxonomic properties of similar phormidian taxa, and the special demands on physico-chemical water conditions, led to the conclusion that the taxon in question cannot be assigned to a known species, but must be considered as an independant species. It is here described as Phormidium ingrediens species nova.
A fossil beetle from the Upper Buntsandstein (Röt-Folge, Lower Triassic) in Karlsruhe Durlach-Eisenhafengrund is described. The specimen is one of the oldest known beetle findings in Germany. According to its stratigrafic context, the finding layer can be correlated with the Voltzia-Sandstone (E-France), which also yielded fossil beetles. The silty matrix, in which the beetle occurs, is interpreted as seasonal playa sediment. The beetle was fragmented during extraction. The lack of diagnostic features of elytra, scutellum and pronotum does not allow to assign the specimen to a family. However, the elytral humeral callus, the set off pronotum with caudolaterally concave margins combined with the size of almost 15 mm allows a diagnostic distinction from other coeval Coleoptera at least in Europe. Therefore, it is justified to refer the specimen from Durlach-Eisenhafengrund to a new genus and species: Durlachia striata.
We report the unexpected discovery of foliicolous lichen communities at several localities in the Black Forest, south-western Germany, with a total of seven truly or facultatively foliicolous taxa: Bacidina chloroticula, Fellhanera bouteillei, F. subtilis, F. viridisorediata, Fellhaneropsis myrtillicola, Gyalectidium setiferum, and Scoliciosporum curvatum. The communities are similar to those reported previously from Belgium, western Germany (Mosel valley), and Austria (Styria), apparently forming a characteristic association across central Europe (Fellhaneretum myrtillicolae SPIER & APTROOT), but are richer in species in the Black Forest than in any of the other areas studied. An identification key is provided to the species of this association in the Black Forest. Gyalectidium setiferum is new for central Europe, and Scoliciosporum curvatum is new to southern Germany.
Since these lichen communities appear to be confined to well-conserved forest and depend on favorable, warm-humid climatic conditions, their potential use as indicators of global climatic change is discussed.
The Middle Miocene (Upper Badenian, MN6) locality Bohlinger Schlucht (Hegau District, South-West Germany) has yielded a diverse assemblage of land mammals and lower vertebrates. After discovery in 2003, the ongoing excavations increased the number of taxa and here we report on the first equid remains of Anchitherium aurelianense from the locality. The best
taxonomic referral of this specimen is to the subspecies A. aurelianense hippoides. A comparison of the Bohlinger Schlucht locality to contemporaneous Western Europe localities is further discussed herein.
The material of Xantholinini (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae) collected by A. RIEDEL in Indonesia is studied. The following new species are described: Andelis tinalum n. sp. (Java), Sumatera halimun n. sp. (Java), Erymus ijen n. sp. (Java), Erymus pohen n. sp. (Bali); Sumatera riedeli n. sp. (Sumatra). The following species are new records for the region: Metolinus modiglianii (Java,
Mentawei), Maharadja pubiventris (Sumatra).
We provide a short history of the development of the Höwenegg quarry between 1985 and 1996, the rationale for continuing the excavations in 2003, and the progress made during the 2004-2006 campaigns. In the 2004 field season we completed our excavation at the western extent of the Main Höwenegg Trench, and retrieved a disturbed Miotragocerus skeleton in close proximity to the other two skeletons retrieved in 2003. We also opened a 5 m thick section in a trench 50 m north of the JÖRG and TOBIEN Quarry, and established the presence of vertebrate fossils and even richer deposits of fossil plant material. The 2005 and 2006 field seasons were dedicated to establishing and opening a new quarry adjacent to, and on the immediate western border of the Main Höwenegg Trench. The establishment of this new Western Quarry required extensive support from the Town of Immendingen for cutting down trees, removing a 1 m thick soil horizon with a
thick mat of roots, and undertaking trenching and bulldozing of disturbed sediments. The Western Quarry, approximately 100 m² in area, was extensively excavated by stratigraphic horizon, and initial correlations to the JÖRG and TOBIEN stratigraphic section made. We provide here statistics on the relative percentages of biotic elements collected, and their representation in our excavations. These analyses demonstrate that Unit 11, a marl where the Miotragocerus and Trionyx skeletons were excavated in 2003 and 2004, is both the richest and contains the most diverse biotic elements at the Höwenegg. These horizons were not excavated in 2004-2006 in the new Western Quarry, but will be in the 2007 field season.
The morphology of the anamorphic hornbeam powdery mildew fungus Oidium carpini on Carpinus betulus is re-examined using light microscopy. All morphological features were documented by line drawings The conidiophore length is very variable and depends on which side of the leaf the conidiophores are formed. This variability is discussed with respect to the morpho-taxonomic value of conidiophore length and identification of anamorphic Erysiphales species. Furthermore, we report this species for the first time from Iran.
Lecanora panis-erucae HERTEL & V. WIRTH, a lichen almost exclusively grazed by the larvae of an unidentified moth, is described as a new species. Lecanora substylosa (losa (losa ZAHLBR.) HERTEl & V. WIRTH comb. nova (basionym:
Lecidea substylosa NYL.), a relative of Lecanora sulphurella HEPP differing by its chemistry, hitherto known only from its type collection, is reported from numerous localities. Lecidella placodina (Lecidella placodina (Lecidella placodina NYL.) HERTEL, previously known only from its type locality in the Angolan part of the Namib Desert, is reported from other localities in
Namibia. Lecidea quartzina STIZ., judged to be a close relative of L. tragorum ZAHLBR., and hitherto known only from its type locality in the Cape Province of South Africa, is reported as new to Namibia. Lecidea sarcogynoides, also hitherto unrecorded for Namibia is reported from a number of localities.
The subcomplete skeleton of an elasmosaurid plesiosaur recently acquired by the Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Karlsruhe (State Museum of Natural History in Karlsruhe) is described. The specimen comes from the early Turanian of the Goulmima region, Morocco, and represents one of the most complete elas- mosaurs known in the world. Owing to the present uncertainties about elasmosaurs systematics, it is referred mainly on stratigraphical grounds to a new species of the genus Libonectes. Some of the bones of the holotype (e.g. cervical vertebrae, ulna) show an unusual type of preservation that might indicate an old-age related pathology. Some aspects of elasmosaurs anatomy suggest non obligatory feeding upon sea floor invertebrates.
A new species of Pertusaria from the Namib desert is described. It is characterized by a smooth, minutely fissured brown thallus with scattered, verruciform apothecia with black ostioles, grey, K+ violet spores and the absence of lichen substances. The species is related to P. melanospora, which differs in having a yellowish thallus and in containing arthothelin and 2,4- dichloronorlichexanthone.
The collection of the Museo de Paleontología de Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico (MPG) contains fossils of vertebrates from
several localities in the State Jalisco, SW-Mexico. The localities are Miocene up to Pleistocene in age. Based on investigations during a visit at the MPG in 2003 a faunal list and a short characterisation of the faunal assemblage are presented in
comparison to the localities Rancho la Brea (California, USA) and Mina (Nuevo León, NE-Mexico). Potential projects for further investigations on the fossil material and the localities are proposed.
A father's story
(2004)
All across the world, in all walks of life, families everywhere look forward to Summer vacations as a way to spend meaningful time together. When my own children were young, I made it a point every year to take them to someplace exciting and new-Florida and New York in the United States, Switzerland and Italy in Europe, Ecuador and various Colombian cities in South America. I always hoped that, as adults, they would look fondly upon the memories they had of their vacation days with their father and one day do the same with their own children.
Although known and housed in German institutions since at least the 19th century, until now marine reptiles from the
Braunjura ß have never been described in detail. The strata have yielded plesiosaur, thalattosuchian and rare ichthyosaur
remains, all fragmentary, most likely due to their deposition in a shallow marine, high energy palaeoenvironment. Cervical
vertebrae, which are housed in the Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Karlsruhe (State Museum of Natural History in
Karlsruhe), are described here and reveal the first elasmosaurid plesiosaurs reported to date from the German Dogger.
We present a species list of spiders collected over a period of more than 5 years in a rainforest reserve in central Amazonia
-Reserva Ducke. The list is mainly based on intense sampling by several methods during two years and frequent visual
sampling during 5 years, but also includes records from other arachnologists and from the literature, in total containing 506
(morpho-)specles in 284 genera and 56 families. The species records from this Neotropical rainforest form the basis for a
biodiversity database for Amazonian spiders with specimens from several Brazilian collections and the collection of the
State Museum of Natural History Karlsruhe, where it is housed. This database will in the future facilitate species identification of Neotropical spider collections, allow comparison of morphospecles and serve as an important background for biodiversity evaluation in natural and anthropogenic habitats and the recognition of species distribution and loss. For further evaluation of the structure of Neotropical spider assemblages and their ecological function we present an analysis of the guild structure of the fauna of Reserva Ducke, although we also emphasize the lack of knowledge on natural history and behavior for many of the species.
In this paper, we describe a new species of Mesoplophora collected from forest floor litter in southwestern Nigeria. Mesoplophora is a cosmopolitan genus of pytchoid mites that has been recorded from the Palaearctic region as well as Morocco
and Tchad in the Ethiopian region. M. ife an a is the first Mesoplophora species to be fully identified and described from Nigeria. Differences between this species, M. ifeana, and other Mesoplophora species recorded from Africa are observed in
respect of the number of spines on the sensillus, presence of two pairs of exobothridial setae and leg chaetotaxy. The lack of information on fine taxonomic details of adults and deutonymphs of M. africana from Tchad as well as the discrepancies in the description of certain morphological features such as organisation and chaetotaxy of the ventral plates as well as the nomenclature of setae on the aspis were noted. Attention was drawn to the unique combination of traits of both lower
and higher Oribatida in Mesoplophora, a trait which may be responsible for its ubiquitous distribution.
Four new species of scytodid spiders from Brazil are described: Scytodes becki sp.n. from Niquelandia and Scytodes
eleonorae sp.n. from Sao Domingos, both in the state of Goias; Scytodes skuki sp.n. from Aripuana, Mato Grosso and
Scytodes strussmannae sp.n. from Xapuri, Acre. Together with the synanthropic species S. globula Nicolet and the Brazilian species S. itapevi Brescovit & Rheims these four new species form a distinct group within the Neotropical Scytodes, herein named "globula group" New records for S. globula and S. itapevi are also reported.