Zootaxa

**Clarifying the identities of Saccostrea scyphophilla (Péron & Lesueur, 1807) and S. mordax (Gould, 1850) (Bivalvia: Ostreidae) from the Indo-Pacific**

2026-04-21T13:11:25+12:00

There have been numerous morphological and genetic studies of oyster taxonomy, but species relationships, particularly in the genus Saccostrea, are poorly understood. The present paper uses shell morphology and DNA sequences to demonstrate Saccostrea scyphophilla (Péron & Lesueur) and S. mordax (Gould) are distinct species. A neotype is designated for S. scyphophilla. Synonyms are Saxostrea amasa Iredale, Ostrea mordax var. cornucopiaeformis Saville-Kent and provisionally Ostrea forskali var. sueli Jousseaume, while Saccostrea mordoides Cui et al. is a synonym of S. mordax. The tropical oyster reef formed by S. scyphophilla at Point Quobba, Western Australia, is the first recorded reef constructed by this species. The present paper provides a basis for further work elucidating the species of Saccostrea in the Indo-West Pacific region.

**The major species group of the genus Geodromicus L. Redtenbacher, 1857 (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae, Omaliinae, Anthophagini), and additional faunistic data on some Palaearctic species**

2026-04-21T13:12:45+12:00

The monotypic major species group of the genus Geodromicus Redtenbacher, 1857, consisting of G. major Motschulsky, 1860 (Crimea, Caucasus, Turkey), is reviewed. The following new synonymies are established: G. major = G. anatolicus Fagel, 1976 syn. nov., = G. dubiosus Fagel, 1976 syn. nov., = G. laticollis Fagel, 1976 syn. nov., = G. svaneticus Iablokoff-Khnzorian, 1989 syn. nov. The following synonymies previously established by Iablokoff-Khnzorian (1989) are confirmed: G. major = G. asiaticus Bernhauer, 1902, = G. gracilicornis Luze, 1903, = G. languidus Luze, 1903, = G. striatus Khnzorian, 1962, = G. ponticus Fagel, 1976, = G. caucasianus A. Bordoni, 1984, = G. luzianus A. Bordoni, 1984. Lectotypes are designated for G. gracilicornis and G. languidus. A distribution map for G. major is provided. Additionally, faunistic records of nine Palaearctic species of Geodromicus are provided. Several species are recorded from a certain area for the first time: G. anlasi Shavrin, 2021 from Bolu, Erzurum and Ardahan (Turkey), G. bodemeyeri Bernhauer, 1902 from Sinop and Ordu (Turkey), G. brevicollis Fauvel, 1875 from Kars (Turkey), G. major from Crimea (Ukraine), Stavropol Area and Chechen Republic (Russia), and Trabzon, Rize, Gümüşane, Artvin, Kars, Erzurum, Malatya and Adiyaman (Turkey), G. plagiatus (Fabricius, 1798) from Albania, and G. zwickianus Fagel, 1976 from Erzurum and Kars (Turkey).

**Marine Chersodromia Walker (Diptera: Hybotidae) from the Mediterranean coastline of Morocco: description of three new species with new records, supported by COI barcoding**

2026-04-21T13:13:35+12:00

Three new species for science of Chersodromia Walker are described from the Moroccan Mediterranean coastline (C. kessabae sp. nov., C. moroccensis sp. nov. and C. estuaria sp. nov.), with the first record of Chersodromia oraria Collin, 1966 in Morocco and new distributional data are provided for Chersodromia pseudohirta Chvála, 1970. This study is based on intensive field surveys conducted by the third author along the Mediterranean coastline of Morocco between 2022 and 2024, targeting especially a variety of coastal habitats. Illustrations of the new species are given, along with COI barcodes of all species recorded. A key to the Moroccan Mediterranean species of Chersodromia is also provided.

**Three new species of Acoetes (Aphroditiformia: Acoetidae) and one new species of Euarche (Aphroditiformia: Acoetidae): first Acoetes described in over three decades**

2026-04-21T13:14:31+12:00

Three new species of the genus Acoetes are described and illustrated, and a dichotomous identification key is provided. These new species from the Brazilian coast exhibit features previously unknown for the genus, such as ventral, dorsal, and elytral papillae. Acoetes pettii sp. nov., collected off Rio de Janeiro, differs from the others mainly by the morphology of a group of neurochaetae and the structure of the neuropodia. Acoetes mirandae sp. nov., collected in Espírito Santo, Brazilian southeast, is distinguished primarily by the arrangement of palpal papillae and the morphology of the parapodia. Acoetes ivisoni sp. nov., collected in Pernambuco, Brazilian northeast, differs chiefly in the morphology of the ommatophores and the projection of the aciculae. Espírito Santo and Pernambuco extend the known distribution of the family along the Brazilian coast. Based on examination of the neotype of Euarche rudipalpa (Amaral & Nonato, 1984), it was determined that the specimen actually represents a new species of the genus Euarche, based on characters such as the presence of ventral papillae and eyes morphology. In addition, the new species of Euarche reaches a depth never previously recorded for the family of 2013 m.

Deep-aea reef building Farreidae (Porifera; Hexactinellida) from the Bering Sea

2026-04-21T13:15:28+12:00

Hexactinellid sponges play an important role as ecosystem engineers through the formation of sponge reefs. Five representatives of the reef building genus Farrea (Farreidae) are recorded from the slope of the Piip Volcano (Volcanologists Massif, the Bering Sea). One of them, F. aspondyla was previously known from the North Pacific. Here we describe four new species of this genus: F. piipi; F. koltuni; F. reiswigi and F. ptushkini. These sponges are important in the sponge reef construction in the bathyal zone of the Bering Sea.

**Revival of an old modern snake: taxonomic status of Dryophylax nattereri (Mikan 1820) (Serpentes, Dipsadidae, Tachymenini)**

2026-04-21T13:16:16+12:00

The genus Dryophylax currently comprises 15 widely distributed South American species of snakes. Despite recent efforts to clarify the systematic status of the genus, several species remain taxonomically poorly defined. One example is Dryophylax nattereri (Mikan 1820), regarded first as a junior synonym of Thamnodynastes strigilis (Thunberg 1787), and later as a junior synonym of Thamnodynastes pallidus (Linnaeus 1758). Despite several historical taxonomic studies addressing other congeners, D. nattereri has been often neglected, and no author has attempted to test species boundaries. Recently, several authors referred to this taxon as Dryophylax cf. nattereri, after it was resurrected without a proper taxonomic justification. Here, we demonstrate that D. nattereri is a valid species, based on morphological data gathered from a large series of individuals distributed throughout its known distribution. We designated a neotype for D. nattereri and provide a detailed description of the species diagnostic characters, with additional data on external morphological variation, skull osteology and hemipenial morphology.

A new genus of Clavigeritae (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Pselaphinae) from Mollucas, Indonesia, with antennae bearing trichomes

2026-04-21T13:17:20+12:00

A new, peculiar genus and species, Capillantennatus mirabilis gen. et sp. nov., is described and illustrated based on a series of four males collected in Kai Besar Island, Maluku, Indonesia. To our knowledge it is the first known genus of Clavigeritae with antennae that bear trichomes for myrmecophily. The antennal morphology and biogeography of Clavigeritae in the Indo-Australian Archipelago are briefly discussed. A list of all known species from the Indo-Australian Archipelago is provided.

Integrative taxonomy uncovers two new pontarachnid mite species from the eastern Mediterranean and Red Sea (Pontarachnidae, Hydrachnidia, Acari)

2026-04-21T13:18:10+12:00

The diversity of Pontarachnidae, the only family of hydrachnid mites occurring in marine environments, remains poorly documented morphologically and molecularly in the Mediterranean Sea and adjacent marine ecosystems, including the Red Sea. Using an integrative taxonomic approach, we described two new species: Litarachna cypriotica sp. nov. from the eastern Mediterranean (Cyprus) and Pontarachna goldschmidti sp. nov. from the Red Sea (Egypt). Interspecific K2P genetic distances exceeded 17% for both new species. Species boundaries were consistently supported across all applied species delimitation analyses. In addition, the presence of Litarachna smiti Pešić, Chatterjee & Ahmed Abada, 2008 was molecularly confirmed for Egypt for the first time, and Pontarachna punctulum Philippi, 1840 was proposed to be removed from the list of Red Sea pontarachnid mites. This study underscores the largely unexplored diversity of pontarachnid mites and highlights the importance of molecular approaches in elucidating the evolutionary mechanisms underlying this diversity.

Tentacula, a baroque new genus of jumping spiders from the Brazilian Caatinga (Araneae: Salticidae: Freyina)

2026-04-21T13:19:07+12:00

A new genus is proposed to include its type species Tentacula nordestina gen. et sp. nov., from the Brazilian Caatinga Dominion. This freyine jumping spider is distinguished by a baroque-ornamented, tentacle-like ventral branch of the retrolateral tibial apophysis, a thin, recurved, tapering dorsal tibial apophysis on the male palps, and, in females, by the position of the accessory pockets. This species is described based on males and females with detailed illustrations, and a distribution map is provided. We also discuss its potential affinities within Freyina, copulatory mechanics and ecological associations with moist microhabitats in an otherwise semi-arid region.

**A new species of Clastobasis Skuse (Diptera: Mycetophilidae) from India with a world checklist**

2026-04-21T13:19:56+12:00

Mycetophilidae (fungus gnats) are globally distributed insects, abundant in humid woodland habitats, yet their biology and systematics remain poorly studied in many regions. Although the life histories of many Palearctic and some Neotropical species are documented, knowledge of other tropical taxa, particularly in the Oriental region, remains fragmentary. The genus Clastobasis Skuse, 1890 currently comprises 30 extant species worldwide, but only ten are known from the Oriental region, with Indian records limited to the poorly preserved Brunetti types. In this study, we describe and illustrate a new species of Clastobasis from India, supported by COX1 sequence data, representing the first DNA barcode for the genus from the country and a global checklist is also presented. This work improves the taxonomic understanding of Clastobasis in the Oriental region and contributes to the broader systematics of Leiinae.

**A new species of Parapsestis Warren, 1912 (Lepidoptera, Drepanidae, Thyatirinae) from Yunnan, China with a key to species of the genus**

2026-04-21T13:20:52+12:00

A new species of the genus Parapsestis Warren, 1912, P. atramentaria Deng, Liu & Han sp. nov., is described from Yunnan Province, China. The illustrations of the male habitus and genitalia of the new species and its most similar species, P. lichenea (Hampson, [1893]), are provided, together with the habitus of another five species that are also distributed in Yunnan Province. A key to all species of Parapsestis is provided, along with a morphological comparison of the new species and its related species.

On the unnecessary disposal of scientific names—a response to Wood (2026)

2026-04-21T13:21:48+12:00