Kovblyuk N.M. 2005. The spider genus Gnaphosa Latreille, 1804 in the Crimea (Aranei: Gnaphosidae) // Arthropoda Selecta. Vol.14. No.2: 133–152.
Zoology Department, National Taurida V.I. Vernadsky University, Yaltinskaya street 4, Simferopol 95007 Ukraine.
KEY WORDS: spiders, Gnaphosa, redescriptions, new synonym, new records, ecology, Crimea.
ABSTRACT. Six species of the genus Gnaphosa are recorded from the Crimea: G. cumensis Ponomarjov, 1981, G. lucifuga (Walckenaer, 1802), G. moesta Thorell, 1875, G. saurica Ovtsharenko, Platnick et Song, 1992, G. taurica Thorell, 1875 and G. ukrainica Ovtsharenko, Platnick et Song, 1992. Three species are recorded from the Crimea for the first time: G. cumensis, G. saurica and G. ukrainica. A new synonym is established: G. turkmenica Ovtsharenko, Platnick et Song, 1992 (?) is synonymized with G. ukrainica Ovtsharenko, Platnick et Song, 1992 (?). Females of G. moesta are described here for the first time (Ovtsharenko et al. [1992] described the female of “G. moesta” based on specimens of an unknown species from Dnepropetrovsk Region, but not from the Crimea, the type locality of G. moesta). The name G. trebax Thorell, 1875 is here treated as nomen dubium. G. jucunda Thorell, 1875 described from the Crimea was not found. The following species were mistakenly identified: G. alacris from Italy by Di Franco [1992 (1994)] and Pesarini [2000], G. moesta from Dnepropetrovsk Region (Ukraine) and Orenburg Region (Russia) by Ovtsharenko et al. [1992] and Tuneva, Esyunin [2002]. All the species found are re-described and illustrated. Their phenology and spatial distribution in the Crimea are discussed. G. alacris Simon, 1878 (Pyrenees) and G. betpaki Ovtsharenko, Platnick et Song, 1992 (Kazakhstan) are briefly re-described and illustrated based on the type specimens.