Guiyang field survey records 17 linyphiid spider species and describes Lenis guiyang

A zoological field survey and taxonomic study of linyphiid spiders in Guiyang, Guizhou Province, China, documented 17 species: 16 previously known species and one species new to science, described as Lenis guiyang He, Yu & Zhang. The authors describe the new species, provide a DNA barcode and compile a checklist of the family’s recorded species in the city, with distribution maps and photographs of live specimens where available.

The survey addressed a substantial gap in the documented spider fauna of Guiyang. Before the study, only one linyphiid, Parameioneta bilobata Li & Zhu, 1993, had been recorded from the city. By comparison, a total of 67 spider species in 26 families had previously been recorded or described from Guiyang. The authors note that these records likely represent only part of the city’s actual spider fauna, while the wider diversity of linyphiids in tropical and subtropical parts of the Oriental Region has been supported by more recent comprehensive surveys.

This was a specimen-based collection and taxonomic study rather than an experiment, simulation or population analysis. Specimens were collected primarily by beating vegetation and by searching, with most sampling events recording effort of 10 km on foot; one searching event listed 11 km. Survey localities included forest parks, scenic areas, mountains, a botanical garden, a hot-spring park and other sites across Guiyang. Examined material was deposited in the State Key Laboratory of Southwest Karst Mountain Biodiversity Conservation of Forestry Administration at Guizhou Normal University in Guiyang.

The researchers examined specimens with an Olympus SZX7 stereomicroscope and an Olympus BX41 compound microscope. Male palps and female epigynes were dissected and illustrated to document taxonomically relevant structures. Epigynes were removed and cleared in warm lactic acid before illustration, while vulvae were also imaged after being embedded in Arabic gum. A Canon EOS70D camera mounted on an Olympus CX41 microscope was used for photography, the digital images were assembled in Helicon Focus version 3.10.3, and distribution maps were generated with ArcGIS version 10.5.

The female holotype of Lenis guiyang was collected by beating at Fengchi Temple on Mount Xiwang in Xifeng, at an elevation of 1,437 metres. It and a female paratype were collected at that locality on 6 June 2022. The holotype’s total body length was 4.69 millimetres, excluding the chelicerae and spinnerets. The living female had a reddish-brown carapace, light brown legs, and an abdomen with a coffee-coloured median band and two yellow lateral stripes. At the time of the study, the new species was known only from its type locality, and its name was derived from Guiyang.

Diagnosis of Lenis guiyang was based largely on the female genital structure. Its spermathecae were digitiform and only slightly curved, and its spiral ducts had approximately two turns. These traits distinguish it from the other known species of Lenis, L. longiabdominis Irfan, Zhang & Peng, 2025, which has distinctly curved, crescent-shaped spermathecae and spiral ducts with approximately 2.5 turns. The two species also differ in abdominal pattern: the median band is uniformly coloured in L. guiyang, whereas L. longiabdominis has three pairs of patches along the sides of that band.

The authors also generated a DNA barcode for L. guiyang. They amplified and sequenced a 633-base-pair fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I gene from the female voucher specimen, code YHGY215, confirmed the sequence using BLAST and deposited it in GenBank under accession PZ944867. The reported sequence work documents the new species, but it was not used to estimate its abundance, genetic diversity or population size.

The findings have bounded geographic and sampling limits. The survey was confined to Guiyang and relied chiefly on beating and searching, so the total of 17 species represents the documented result of these collections rather than a complete inventory of every linyphiid potentially present in the city. In addition, L. guiyang was represented by two adult females from a single locality. The reported evidence therefore establishes its occurrence at Mount Xiwang but leaves its broader distribution and population characteristics unresolved.

Subject of Research: Field survey and taxonomic description of linyphiid spiders in Guiyang, China

Article Title: A survey of linyphiid spiders ( Arachnida , Linyphiidae ) from Guiyang, Guizhou Province, China, with description of a new species

Article References: Zhao, W., He, L., Chen, X., Zhang, J., & Yu, H. (2026). A survey of linyphiid spiders (Arachnida, Linyphiidae) from Guiyang, Guizhou Province, China, with description of a new species. Biodiversity Data Journal, 14, Article e210136. https://doi.org/10.3897/bdj.14.e210136

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.3897/BDJ.14.e210136

Keywords: Linyphiidae, spider taxonomy, Guiyang, Guizhou Province, Lenis guiyang, species description, DNA barcoding, field survey, arachnology, survey, linyphiid, spiders