Taracus
Axel Schönhofer
- Taracus birsteini Ljovuschkin 1971
- Taracus gertschi Goodnight & Goodnight 1942
- Taracus malkini Goodnight & Goodnight 1945
- Taracus nigripes Goodnight & Goodnight 1943
- Taracus packardi Simon 1879
- Taracus pallipes Banks 1894
- Taracus silvestrii Roewer 1929
- Taracus spinosus Banks 1894
Introduction
Taracus are medium sized to large bodied harvestmen with peculiar elongated chelicerae. Male genital morphology is simple and chelicerae seem not to exhibit glandular structures as in other Dyspnoi-groups. They differ from morphologically similar, but unrelated, animals with large chelicerae by the form of the male genitalia and the composition of the sternal region. The distribution is mainly in western North American, especially along the Coast associating humid forests but also in the Rocky Mountains and other high altitude ranges as far south as Arizona and New Mexico (Shear 1986). A single species has been described from Siberia, Russia (Ljovushkin 1972).
Taxonomy and Discussion of Phylogenetic Relationships
Many descriptions lack explicit type localities and some are likely to be based upon juvenile specimens. Most species need to be redescribed, no phylogenetic concept exists within the genus; therefore, a revision is overdue.
Ecology and Life History
Taracus species inhabit cold and permanently humid environments, mainly in dense forests, but are recorded from caves as well. Specimens from forests seem to mature in late autumn.
References
Ljovushkin, S. I. 1972. Biospeologica Sovietica XLIII(43). Report on the first finding of the American genus Taracus Simon (Opiliones, Ischyropsalididae) in Asia with a description of T. birsteini sp. n. from a cave of the southern part of the Primorsky kraj. Bjulleten' Moskovskogo Obscestva Ispytatelej Prirody, Otdel biologiceskij 76(3):127-133.
Shear, W. A. 1986. A cladistic analysis of the opilionid superfamily Ischyropsalidoidea, with descriptions of the new family Ceratolasmatidae, the new genus Acuclavella, and four new species. American Museum Novitates 2844:1-29.
Title Illustrations
| Scientific Name | Taracus sp |
|---|---|
| Specimen Condition | Live Specimen |
| Identified By | Axel Sch?nhofer |
| Life Cycle Stage | juvenile |
| Copyright |
© 2011 Axel Schönhofer
|
About This Page
Many thanks to Angela DiDomenico for the final English check.
Axel Schönhofer
San Diego States University, San Diego, California, USA
Correspondence regarding this page should be directed to Axel Schönhofer at
Page copyright © 2012 Axel Schönhofer
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- First online 08 July 2012
- Content changed 08 July 2012
Citing this page:
Schönhofer , Axel. 2012. Taracus . Version 08 July 2012 (under construction). http://tolweb.org/Taracus/60689/2012.07.08 in The Tree of Life Web Project, http://tolweb.org/
