Teyl is a genus of nemesiid

Nemesiidae

The Nemesiidae are a spider family of the infraorder Mygalomorphae, and the only member of the superfamily Nemesioidea. They were formerly considered part of the Dipluridae family.-Description:...

 spider

Spider

Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...

s with four described (and many undescribed) species, all of which are endemic to Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. It is one of four genera of the tribe

Tribe (biology)

In biology, a tribe is a taxonomic rank between family and genus. It is sometimes subdivided into subtribes.Some examples include the tribes: Canini, Acalypheae, Hominini, Bombini, and Antidesmeae.-See also:* Biological classification* Rank...

 Teylini

Teylini

Teylini is a tribe of mygalomorph spiders consisting of the four genera Teyl, Namea, Teyloides and Pseudoteyl.It is distinguished from the tribe Anamini only by technical differences, like a narrow band of cuspules on the maxillae and the absence of a spine-bearing spur on the first tibia of males...

. The type species

Type species

In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...

 is T. luculentus.

Distribution

The genus occurs in south-western Australia as well as in Eyre Peninsula

Eyre Peninsula

Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded on the east by Spencer Gulf, the west by the Great Australian Bight, and the north by the Gawler Ranges. It is named after explorer Edward John Eyre who explored some of it in 1839-1841. The coastline was first explored by...

 and western Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

. Its distribution was likely fragmented in southern Australia during the Cretaceous

Cretaceous

The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...

 inundation of central Australia, the radiation of the genus in south-western Australia has probably resulted from the continuing isolation of relictual habitats which have retained aspects of Gondwana

Gondwana

In paleogeography, Gondwana , originally Gondwanaland, was the southernmost of two supercontinents that later became parts of the Pangaea supercontinent. It existed from approximately 510 to 180 million years ago . Gondwana is believed to have sutured between ca. 570 and 510 Mya,...

n conditions.

Species

• Teyl harveyi Main, 2004 — Victoria
• Teyl luculentus Main, 1975 — Western Australia
• Teyl walkeri Main, 2004 — Victoria
• Teyl yeni Main, 2004 — Victoria

Names

The genus name is an Australian Aboriginal word meaning a brightly coloured stone - thus the reference is to the glabrous (shiny) bright texture of the spider's integument.
The specific name luculentus of the type species refers to the shining yellowish colour.
T. harvey is named as a tribute to Mark S. Harvey, T. walkeri after Ken Walker, T. yeni after Alan Yen.