Dicranolasmatidae
Encyclopedia
The Dicranolasmatidae are a family of harvestmen with about 20 described species in a single genus.
s are both hidden under the hood in adults and about half as long as the body. The legs are short. Immature forms are quite different from adults. The immature form of D. opilionoides was even described as a different genus (Amopaum). The hood develops only gradually, so in young Dicranolasma the relatively longer pedipalps are carried outside the hood.
, the Carpathians, eastward to the Caucasus
and Iraq
, the Levant
and southward to western North Africa
.
and Nemastomatidae
, with Trogulus probably sister to Dicranolasma.
The genus consists of five species groups:
dikranos "two-headed" and elasma "plate", referring to the hood.
Description
Species of Dicranolasma range in body length from three to 6.4 mm. Most parts of the body are encrusted with soil particles. The anterior region features a large headlike "hood" with the eyes in center, which consists of two curved processes. The chelicerae and pedipalpPedipalp
Pedipalps , are the second pair of appendages of the prosoma in the subphylum Chelicerata. They are traditionally thought to be homologous with mandibles in Crustacea and insects, although more recent studies Pedipalps (commonly shortened to palps or palpi), are the second pair of appendages of the...
s are both hidden under the hood in adults and about half as long as the body. The legs are short. Immature forms are quite different from adults. The immature form of D. opilionoides was even described as a different genus (Amopaum). The hood develops only gradually, so in young Dicranolasma the relatively longer pedipalps are carried outside the hood.
Distribution
Dicranolasmatidae occur mainly in the Mediterranean region northward to the southern AlpsAlps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
, the Carpathians, eastward to the Caucasus
Caucasus
The Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
and Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, the Levant
Levant
The Levant or ) is the geographic region and culture zone of the "eastern Mediterranean littoral between Anatolia and Egypt" . The Levant includes most of modern Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian territories, and sometimes parts of Turkey and Iraq, and corresponds roughly to the...
and southward to western North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
.
Relationships
The Dicranolasmatidae are closely related to the TrogulidaeTrogulidae
The Trogulidae are a family of harvestmen with about 45 known species.Members of this species have short legs and live in soil. They have dirt attached to their bodies, to escape predators. Their body length ranges from 2 to 22 mm. The body is in most genera somewhat flattened and leathery...
and Nemastomatidae
Nemastomatidae
The Nemastomatidae are a family of harvestmen with about 170 described species in 16 recent genera. Several fossil species and genera are known.Unlike some related currently recognized families, the Nemastomatidae are monophyletic.-Description:...
, with Trogulus probably sister to Dicranolasma.
The genus consists of five species groups:
- D. scabrum group — Aegean IslandsAegean IslandsThe Aegean Islands are the group of islands in the Aegean Sea, with mainland Greece to the west and north and Turkey to the east; the island of Crete delimits the sea to the south, those of Rhodes, Karpathos and Kasos to the southeast...
, Turkey, Caucasia, Middle EastMiddle EastThe Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East... - D. scabrum, D. opilionoides, D. hoberlandti, D. giljarovi, D. kurdistanum, D. thracium, D. ressli, D. ponticum, D. cretaeum.
- D. mladeni group
- D. cristatum group
- D. soerensenii group
- D. apuanum group
Name
The genus name Dicranolasma is a combination of Ancient GreekAncient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
dikranos "two-headed" and elasma "plate", referring to the hood.
Species
- Dicranolasma apuanum Marcellino, 1970 - Italy
- Dicranolasma cretaeum Gruber, 1998 - CreteCreteCrete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
- Dicranolasma cristatum Thorell, 1876 - ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
- Dicranolasma diomedeum Kulczynski, 1907
- Dicranolasma giljarovi Silhavý, 1966 - RhodosRhodesRhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 117,007, and also the island group's historical capital. Administratively the island forms a separate municipality within...
, Carpathians, CaucasusCaucasusThe Caucasus, also Caucas or Caucasia , is a geopolitical region at the border of Europe and Asia, and situated between the Black and the Caspian sea...
, Turkey - Dicranolasma hirtum Loman, 1894 - SumatraSumatraSumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
? or endemic to Italy? - Dicranolasma hoberlandti Silhavý, 1956 - Turkey
- Dicranolasma kurdistanum Starega, 1970
- Dicranolasma mlandeni I. M. Karaman, 1990 - YugoslaviaYugoslaviaYugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
- Dicranolasma napoli Goodnight & Goodnight, 1944 - Italy
- Dicranolasma opilionoides (L. KochLudwig Carl Christian KochLudwig Carl Christian Koch was a German entomologist and arachnologist.He was born in Regensburg, Germany and died in Nuremberg, Germany. He studied in Nuremberg, initially law, but then turned to medicine and science...
, 1867) - GreeceGreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, SicilySicilySicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,... - Dicranolasma pauper DahlFriedrich DahlKarl Friedrich Theodor Dahl was a German zoologist, and in particular an arachnologist....
, 1903 — Italy - Dicranolasma ponticum Gruber, 1998 - TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
- Dicranolasma ressli Gruber, 1998 - Turkey
- Dicranolasma scabrum (HerbstJohann Friedrich Wilhelm HerbstJohann Friedrich Wilhelm Herbst was a German naturalist and entomologist from Petershagen, Minden-Ravensberg....
, 1799) - southeastern Europe - Dicranolasma soerenseni Thorell, 1876 — Italy, Sardinia, ...
- Dicranolasma thracium Starega, 1976
- Dicranolasma verhoeffi Dahl, 1903 - DalmatiaDalmatiaDalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....