Integrative-taxonomy
Guides
Araneae
spiders
Araneae is an order of air-breathing arachnids comprising over 51,000 described species across 136 families, ranking seventh in total species diversity among all organismal orders. Members are characterized by two body regions (cephalothorax and unsegmented abdomen), eight legs, cheliceral fangs with venom glands, and abdominal spinnerets that produce silk. The order is divided into two suborders: Mesothelae (87 species, retaining abdominal segmentation) and Opisthothelae (over 39,000 species, without abdominal segmentation). Spiders occupy virtually all terrestrial habitats worldwide except Antarctica, functioning exclusively as predators of insects and other small arthropods.
Araniella
Cucumber Spiders, Sixspotted Orbweaver
Araniella is a genus of small orb-weaver spiders in the family Araneidae, first described in 1942. The genus includes approximately 20 recognized species distributed across the Palearctic and Nearctic regions, with notable species including A. cucurbitina (cucumber green spider) and A. displicata (sixspotted orbweaver). Members are characterized by green coloration due to biliverdin pigments, small body size (4–8 mm), and distinctive abdominal spotting patterns. Several species have been described recently, including A. villanii (2020) named after mathematician Cédric Villani.
Balclutha jafara
Balclutha jafara is a leafhopper species native to Africa that was introduced to the Western Hemisphere by 2019. First detected in southern Florida in 2020 and in Colombian shipments entering the United States in 2019, it was previously known only from the Seychelles and Aldabra Islands. The species has since been documented across a broader African range including Kenya, South Africa, South Sudan, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Molecular analysis using COI barcodes confirmed its identity and revealed connections between populations on multiple continents.
Bisetocreagris
pseudoscorpion
Bisetocreagris is a genus of pseudoscorpions (family Neobisiidae) endemic to China, with many species adapted to cave environments. Members are characterized by small body size and relatively conservative morphology, making species-level identification challenging. The genus is concentrated in southeastern China, particularly in Guizhou Province, where stable cave microenvironments support narrow-range endemics. It serves as a model system for studying climate sensitivity in cave-dwelling arachnids, and research indicates its suitable habitat is highly threatened by projected climate change.
Bombus flavidus appalachiensis
A subspecies of the cuckoo bumble bee Bombus flavidus endemic to eastern North America, ranging from the Appalachian Mountains to the eastern boreal regions of the United States and far southeastern Canada. Described in 2021 following integrative taxonomic analysis that revealed this population as genetically and morphologically distinct from western North American and Palearctic populations. As a social parasite, this subspecies does not construct colonies or collect pollen but invades nests of other bumble bee species.
Ellescus
Ellescus is a genus of true weevils in the family Curculionidae, tribe Ellescini. The genus contains approximately 16 described species globally. In North America, four valid species are recognized: the widespread and morphologically variable E. ephippiatus, the Holarctic E. bipunctatus, the west coast endemic E. californicus, and the temperate E. michaeli. Species identification relies on morphological examination and molecular markers, particularly ITS2, which has proven more reliable than CO1 for delineating closely related species.
Ellescus bipunctatus
Ellescus bipunctatus is a Holarctic weevil species in the tribe Ellescini. A recent taxonomic revision designated a neotype for this species and established E. borealis as its junior synonym. It is one of four valid Ellescus species in North America, where it occurs alongside the widespread E. ephippiatus, the west coast endemic E. californicus, and the newly described E. michaeli. The species has been distinguished from congeners using integrative taxonomy combining morphological and molecular data.
Eremaeoidea
Eremaeoidea is a superfamily of oribatid mites (Acari: Oribatida) established by Oudemans in 1900. Recent integrative taxonomic studies have revealed substantial cryptic diversity within this group, particularly in the genus Caleremaeus. What was long considered a single widespread species, C. monilipes, has been demonstrated to comprise at least five distinct species based on combined genetic, ecological, and morphological evidence. These mites are small, soil-dwelling microarthropods with varied habitat specializations ranging from strict deadwood association to alpine moss communities.
Eryciini
Eryciini is a tribe of tachinid flies comprising approximately 128 genera. The tribe serves as a repository for exoristine taxa that cannot be placed into other tribes, resulting in a polyphyletic assemblage. Members are parasitoids of Lepidoptera larvae, with documented associations to caterpillars in families Crambidae, Notodontidae, Noctuidae, Pyralidae, and Tortricidae. A new genus, Santarosamyia, was described in 2024 from Costa Rica based on specimens reared from wild-caught caterpillars.
Hyles chamyla
Hyles chamyla is a hawkmoth species in the family Sphingidae, described by Denso in 1913. A recent integrative study treats it as a distinct close relative of H. hippophaes, while noting that the pair overlap substantially in morphology and ecology. Verified specimen records include Xinjiang in northwestern China and Tuva in southern Siberia; such records document occurrences rather than the species’ complete range.
Ilocomba yotoco
*Ilocomba yotoco* is an anyphaenid spider described from the western Andes of Colombia in 2026. It is known from the Reserva Bosque Yotoco in Valle del Cauca, where the type material was collected at 1,590 m. Males and females are distinguished from related *Ilocomba* by details of their reproductive structures, and DNA data place the species as the close relative of *I. marta*. The species is small: the male holotype measured 3.81 mm in total body length.
Karschia
Karschia is a genus of camel spiders (order Solifugae) in the family Karschiidae. Published accounts place the genus across North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia, with many species described from western China. Species-level work in Xizang has combined morphological characters with molecular data, while recent papers continue to describe Chinese species. These studies make Karschia a useful example of how regional collecting and integrative taxonomy are expanding knowledge of an understudied arachnid group.
Lasioglossum petrellum
sweat bee
Lasioglossum petrellum is a species of sweat bee in the family Halictidae, originally described by Cockerell in 1903. It belongs to the subgenus Dialictus, one of the largest and most taxonomically challenging groups within the genus Lasioglossum. Recent integrative taxonomic research using DNA barcoding and morphology has revealed that L. petrellum represents a cryptic species complex, with four new species described from within its former range. The species is native to North America and Middle America.
Lucasioides
Lucasioides is a genus of terrestrial isopods (woodlice) in the family Agnaridae. A 2024 taxonomic study counted 38 described species, recorded from China, Japan, Korea, and Russian Siberia. Field observations reported in that study place specimens in leaf litter and beneath rock piles. Several species are difficult to separate by appearance alone, so researchers have combined anatomical measurements with DNA evidence to test their boundaries.
Naphrys
North American Euophrys jumping spiders
A genus of small jumping spiders in the family Salticidae, tribe Euophryini. First described by G.B. Edwards in 2003, the name is a portmanteau of 'North America' and 'Euophrys'. Species are compact-bodied, typically under 5 mm in length, with cryptic brown or gray coloration. Originally considered restricted to the Nearctic region, but subsequent research has demonstrated distribution extending into the Neotropical region. The genus currently includes seven described species, with four originally described from the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and three additional species described from Mexico in 2024.
Naphrys tuuca
Naphrys tuuca is a jumping spider (family Salticidae) described from Mexico in 2025. Its description placed it among three new Naphrys species and used morphological and ultrastructural characters together with mitochondrial COI data. The paper reports its type locality at Cerro San Juan in Tepic, Nayarit; that locality is a documented collection point, not evidence of the species’ full range or habitat.
Neolucia
Neolucia is a genus of lycaenid butterflies reported from Australia, including Tasmania. Species-level taxonomic work documents the group in both southwestern Western Australia and mainland southeastern Australia. A 2023 study recognized N. bollami as a species distinct from N. agricola using combined evidence from adult and immature morphology, ecology, behavior, and DNA. That study links seasonal separation and host fidelity to the diversification of this particular pair, not necessarily to every Neolucia species.
Novochares
water scavenger beetles
Novochares is a genus of water scavenger beetles (Hydrophilidae: Acidocerinae) erected in 2021 to accommodate New World species previously placed in Helochares. The genus contains 52 described species distributed across the entire Neotropical region from Mexico to Argentina, including Caribbean islands. Species circumscription relies heavily on male aedeagus morphology due to relatively homogeneous external characteristics. An integrative taxonomic approach combining adult morphology with COI and 28S DNA sequence data was used to delimit species boundaries.
Ochlerotatus dorsalis
Salt Marsh Mosquito
Ochlerotatus dorsalis is a Holarctic mosquito species with a transcontinental distribution spanning the Palearctic and Nearctic regions. Genetic studies have identified two highly distinctive COI mtDNA phylogroups corresponding to these regions, suggesting Pleistocene vicariance of an ancestral range due to geographical barriers and climatic changes. The species is epidemiologically relevant as a potential pathogen vector.
Perilampus hyalinus
A Nearctic parasitoid wasp in the family Perilampidae, part of a species complex historically confused under this name for over 100 years. Recent integrative taxonomic revision (2024) clarified its status through neotype designation with COI sequence, establishing it as either a hyperparasitoid of dipteran parasitoids of Orthoptera or a parasitoid of dipteran kleptoparasites of Crabronidae and Sphecidae that provision nests with Orthoptera. Distinguished from eight newly described congeneric species through morphology, COI, ITS2, and host data.
Prasinocyma
Prasinocyma is an accepted genus of geometrid moths, placed in Geometrinae and Hemistolini. Its diversity is substantial: a 2016 integrative revision raised the Ethiopian checklist from eight to 40 species, while that regional figure is not a global genus total. The genus is recognized taxonomically through detailed revisionary work rather than a simple field mark.
Pseudoloxops
plant bugs
Pseudoloxops is a genus of plant bugs (Miridae) established by Kirkaldy in 1905. Recent integrative taxonomic research in French Polynesia has dramatically expanded knowledge of the genus, describing 17 new species from this region alone and bringing the total of endemic French Polynesian species to 20—representing one-third of all known Pseudoloxops species worldwide. The genus exhibits unusual host plant associations, including rare fern specialization in some species.
Spilomicrini
Spilomicrini is a tribe of small parasitoid wasps within the family Diapriidae (Hymenoptera). Members are generally melanic (dark-colored), with body lengths ranging from 1.5–4.5 mm. The tribe includes at least 14 genera and exhibits high sexual dimorphism and intraspecific morphological variation, which complicates species identification. The genus Spilomicrus alone contains over 100 described species with worldwide distribution.
Spiris
Spiris is a tiger-moth genus in Erebidae that remains treated differently by taxonomic databases. An integrative 2019 revision recognized it as distinct from related genera using morphological and molecular genetic evidence. That study treated S. striata and S. slovenica among the Iberian and Mediterranean members of the Coscinia genus group.
Stegana
vinegar flies
Stegana is a genus of vinegar flies (Drosophilidae) comprising at least 140 described species. The genus is characterized by high morphological conservatism, particularly in the subgenus Orthostegana, where evolutionary stasis has produced numerous cryptic species that are difficult to distinguish by external morphology alone. Species delimitation often requires integrative approaches combining molecular data (mitochondrial COI and ND2 genes) with detailed morphological analysis.
Synema
Synema is a genus of crab spiders (Thomisidae) with a wide distribution across most parts of the world. The genus includes species with high morphological variability, as demonstrated by integrative studies combining molecular and morphological data. Some species, such as S. globosum, exhibit deep mitochondrial divergence without corresponding nuclear or morphological differentiation, complicating species delimitation. Members of this genus are typically found in leaf-dwelling habitats and exhibit ballooning behavior as juveniles, which contributes to their broad geographic range.
Tantra
Tantra is a recently described genus of ray spiders in the family Theridiosomatidae. The genus currently contains nine described species: eight are recorded from Panama, while Tantra kullki is recorded from Ecuador. Its species were treated in a 2025 integrative-taxonomy study focused on cloud-forest spiders in Panama, which also transferred T. kullki into Tantra. The name Tantra comes from the Sanskrit word tántra, meaning loom or weave.
Taophila
Taophila is a genus of leaf beetles in the subfamily Eumolpinae, endemic to New Caledonia. An integrative revision recognized 21 species by combining morphological study with mitochondrial DNA evidence. Species-level identification relies on detailed taxonomic treatments; a revision found that many species in the former T. subsericea complex are distinguishable by female diagnostic characters.
Teloganopsis
spiny crawler mayfly
Teloganopsis is a genus of spiny crawler mayflies (Ephemeroptera: Ephemerellidae) comprising approximately 17 described species. The genus was established by Ulmer in 1939 and occurs primarily in the Oriental region. Recent taxonomic work in Thailand has used integrative approaches combining morphology and molecular data (COI and 28S rDNA) to distinguish species, with abdominal color patterns serving as consistent diagnostic characters across developmental stages. Species in this genus have been documented from Thailand and other parts of Asia, though many remain poorly known due to limited collection and study.
Themira lohmanus
Lohman's ensign-fly
A relatively large and robust sepsid fly described in 2017 from two urban parks in New York City. Originally collected in 2007 and misidentified as Themira biloba, it was recognized as a distinct species through morphological differences (asymmetrical male surstyli), 4.46% COI DNA divergence, and complete post-zygotic reproductive isolation. The species is notable as the first new Themira species described from the Nearctic in 90 years despite occurring in one of the world's most intensively studied urban areas.
Torrenticola
Torrenticola is a genus of water mites in the family Torrenticolidae, comprising over 400 described species globally and 90 species in North America alone. These mites are characteristic inhabitants of rocky and sandy streams, where they represent the dominant water mite genus. Recent taxonomic work has demonstrated that color markings, long overlooked by traditional acarology, serve as valuable diagnostic characters for species identification when combined with DNA sequencing and morphological analysis.
Torrenticolidae
torrent mites
Torrenticolidae is a family of water mites (Acari: Hydrachnidia) in the order Trombidiformes. Members are tiny, heavily sclerotized, crawling arthropods found in running freshwater habitats. The family contains approximately 5 genera and more than 400 described species, with the genus Torrenticola being the most diverse and widespread. Species diversity is highest in tropical regions, though the family occurs on all continents except Antarctica.
Tranes
Tranes is a genus of true weevils in the family Curculionidae, subfamily Molytinae, established by Schoenherr in 1843. Species in this genus are strongly associated with cycads, particularly the genera Bowenia, Lepidozamia, and Macrozamia. A 2024 integrative taxonomic revision expanded the genus from four to ten species, describing six new species and redescribing previously named taxa. The genus is part of the broader Tranes group of cycad- and grasstree-associated weevils found in Australia.