Chilean anapids and their webs, a phylogenetic approach (Araneae, Anapidae)

LOPARDO, L.; RAMÍREZ, M. J.

Paris, Francia

Congreso; 23rd Annual Meeting of the Willi Hennig Society ‘‘Phylogenetics and Evolutionary Biology’’; 2004

Willi Hennig Society

In a recent paper, the orb webs of the Chileananapid genera Crassanapis, Sheranapis, and Elanapiswere described for the first time. Crassanapis andSheranapis species spin a typical anapid web, with oneto several above the orb-plane radii. Their webs areintraspecifically variable in architectural details andsize. Sheranapis villarrica often constructs smaller websclose to the water surface of streams. The web ofElanapis aisen is bidimensional, without out of theorb-plane threads, like those of some Symphytognathidae.Moreover, the mysmenid genus Maymenabuilds three-dimensional orb webs typical of anapids.The bidimensional symphytognathid-like web and theprotruding labrum typical of Anapidae among othercharacters make Elanapis an interesting taxon in thephylogenetic analysis of symphytognathoids. Threeanapid species representing the three genera wereadded into three different published data matrices,and the matrices were reanalyzed under parsimonyand equal weights. The original cladograms were notdrastically different after the inclusion of Anapidaerepresentatives, and Anapidae is monophyletic. Whileorb web architecture and the behaviors used for itsconstruction comprise the main group ofsynapomorphies defining Orbiculariae, the convergencein its architecture is flamboyant, at least withinsymphytognathoids. This convergence questions themembership of some representatives within theirfamilies, as well as the phylogenetic content of orbwebs structural details, at least in this big group ofsmall spiders.