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Issue: Vol. 1965 No. 1: 17 Dec. 2008
Type: Article
Published: 2008-12-17
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.1965.1.2
Page range: 50–60
Abstract views: 50
PDF downloaded: 2

A review of the genus Paratus Simon (Araneae, Dionycha)

Institute of Biological Problems of the North, RAS, Portovaya Str. 18, Magadan 685000, Russia Zoological Museum, University of Turku, FI-20014 Turku, Finland
Shenyang Normal University, Shenyang 110034, P. R. China
Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, P. R. China
Araneae Taxonomy morphology palp epigyne Yunnan Uttar Pradesh

Abstract

The spider genus Paratus Simon, 1898 was known for more than hundred years from a single female from Sri Lanka. A survey of spiders in south China and northern India reveals two new species: P. sinensis sp. n. and P. indicus sp. n. Both species are described based on males and females. The study of the copulatory organs and somatic morphology led us to conclude that Paratus cannot be placed in any described subfamily of Liocranidae, where it was placed originally, or in Corinnidae. Therefore, we describe a new subfamily Paratinae subfam. n. and retain this group within Liocranidae.

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