New Publication on German spiders and harvestmen

Jonas Astrin and colleagues present the result of an extensive DNA barcoding study on the German arachnid fauna in the journal ‘PLoS ONE’. About 60% of the native spiders and 70% of harvestmen (about 600 species in total) were included in the analyzes. DNA barcodes were obtained from more than 3,500 animals. The vast majority of species can now be clearly identified by their DNA barcodes. In addition to reliable species identification of all life stages, the database now allows the detection of allochthonous lines and monitoring of gene flow, and forms the basis for future environmental studies using metabarcoding approaches. Beside four first-records for species found at the Federal state level, Oreonetides glacialis (L. Koch, 1872) was found in Bavaria at the Zugspitze in 2,600 meters, a species that has not been seen in Germany before.